


The Bartender

by JaegerBombs



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bar/Pub, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Character Death, M/M, Past Abuse, Past Drug Use, Past Relationship(s), idk just young adult kind of stuff, mild violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-11-19
Updated: 2017-04-03
Packaged: 2018-01-02 01:18:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 21
Words: 80,707
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1050807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JaegerBombs/pseuds/JaegerBombs
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eren is a 21 year old student who just finished his junior year of college. He finds himself in need of a new job once his summer break begins and is taken under the wing of a popular flair bartender, Levi. He finds himself enjoying his new job more than he probably should, but his time with Levi leaves him contemplating the choices he's been making and even has him questioning how well he knows himself.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so I have decided to contribute to fandom! This is the first fanfiction I have written in a really long time, and really the first thing I've written in quite a while. So I'm not expecting this to be super spectacular, but I wanted to have some fun with characters that I love and cherish so dearly. 
> 
> I'm not really intending for this to get *super* serious, although it could go in that direction. And while I have a general idea of the events that will take place throughout the course of the story, I'm not completely sure where this story is going to ultimately go. I'm just going to kind of go with the flow. I find that to be less stressful than trying to fit everything into the story in a specific way.
> 
> I'm not going to promise that the characters will always be in character either - after all, it is an AU and they are not living every day training and fighting titans that threaten their very existence. But I'm going to try the best I can to keep them true to their personalities.
> 
> I gave it an E rating as I am definitely planning on writing some sexy times in future chapters. 
> 
> This is completely unbeta'd. So if you see any errors, please let me know.
> 
> Also, my tumblr url is erens-jaeger-bombs and i'll be tracking the tag fic: the bartender if anyone actually decides to make a post about my fic?? idk

It was a long day. The last day of the school year always was for Eren, and it seemed even longer in college. He was relieved that he wouldn't have to stress over book reports and mile-long essays any more, at least for a few months. One more year left, and he could put the educational system behind him. Good riddance.

He was a business major. Nothing special. A typical career field to go for when one wasn't considerably passionate about anything. Eren was upset with himself for not knowing what he wanted to do with his life. But the societal pressures of going straight to college after high school led him to take this path. He had been working part time for a local pizza joint. But he dreaded going there and would probably quit soon if they didn't fire him first for his increasingly awful attendance. It pained him to be so apathetic about everything and he was tired of going through the same routine day after day. 

He drove home from the college immediately after his final exam. His apartment was conveniently located close by. He parked his truck and walked up three flights of stairs to get to his mid-level apartment. It was relatively empty. He kept his belongings to a bare minimum. He had a desk to work on his schoolwork, and a couch sat in his living room. There was a small tv stand which held up his 48'' flat screen. There was no dining table or much of anything else for that matter. He liked keeping it minimal. If only he could get himself the motivation to keep the area a bit more tidy. There were papers strewn around on the floor, bowls and plates laying around on the desk and the back of the couch, and some clothes thrown around here and there. 

Eren sighed and ignored it, moving into the kitchen to grab something to eat. Pizza rolls. Those sounded delicious. He dumped the entire bag onto his only remaining clean plate and threw them in the microwave. After he hit the start button he heard his apartment door open.

“Hey, Eren. How did exams go?” 

It was Armin. His best friend since his childhood. Armin was a smart guy. He had the potential to go an ivy league school and really make something of himself. But for some reason he chose to go to a simple university alongside Eren. Eren never quite understood why. His best friend would eventually have to move to another school because he was majoring in the medical field in hopes of becoming a doctor. He aspired to learn medicine so he could travel the world and help those in less fortunate countries deal with their health problems. Such a noble cause. Eren envied his passion.

He poked his head out from the small kitchen to see the blond-haired boy flopping his body down on the couch. “Okay, I guess. I'm sure I passed them at least.” He answered. Armin let out a sigh. 

“How have your grades been the last few weeks?” He asked. Always so concerned about his friend. There were times that his nagging made him worse than Eren's sister, Mikasa.

“They fell a little.. You know how unmotivated I get at the end of a semester..” Eren mumbled. Sometimes he felt like he was really letting Armin down when he didn't put 100% into his school work. He decided to shift the heat. “What about you? How'd your exams go today?” 

“Great! I'm pretty sure I managed to ace them!” His voice was so enthusiastic. But Eren expected nothing less. Armin lived to learn. He absorbed knowledge and Eren swore the guy learned everything through osmosis. The microwave let out a ding, announcing it was finished. Eren pulled out the pizza rolls and felt to make sure they were hot. Some were scalding with the cheese oozing out and others were still a little cold but honestly Eren couldn't be bothered with it. He grabbed the plate and walked into the living room where he sat on the couch next to his friend. The two of them gobbled down the food and engaged in meaningless small talk for a while.

“Do you have to work tonight?” Armin asked. 

“Probably. But I'm not going.” Eren answered without much thought.

“Eren, you can't just not go.” Not if he wanted to keep his job anyway. 

“I'm pretty over that place. The boss hates me and their pizza isn't even good anyway.” Eren sighed.

“You have bills to pay.” 

“I'll get another job.” Eren groaned, covering his face with his hands.

“Alright, man, I'd just hate to see you dig yourself into a hole.” Armin replied. “Well, I guess since you're not planning on going to work, do you want to go get a few drinks tonight? Celebrate the end of the semester?” He suggested. 

It had been a few weeks since Eren went down to the strip. He always went to the same bar, Wall Maria. But he'd heard though his classmates that a new bar had opened recently, and had become a hot spot almost immediately. Apparently the fuss was that there was a really amazing flair bartender, who did all kinds of complicated spinning and tossing tricks and made it look like he could do it in his sleep. People also made a fuss about the DJ that played there on the weekends as well.

Naturally, Armin insisted on going to the new bar.

“It's probably really lame. People just like some guy that works there.” Eren said. He wasn't exactly resisting going, he _was_ curious, but he was one to stick to the usual. 

“Well, if it's lame then we'll just leave and go over to Wall Maria. I'm sure it'd be nice to see Annie, huh?” Armin nudged Eren with his elbow. Eren blushed. Annie was a bartender at Wall Maria. Eren's favorite. He wouldn't say he had a crush on her, exactly, but he enjoyed talking with her after downing a few shots. She came off as cold and distant but she seemed to be okay with opening up to Eren. He could easily admit he missed seeing her.

“Maybe we can just plan on going to both.” Eren said and Armin agreed. The two spent the next few hours in the apartment talking and playing video games until it was late enough to go out. Eren had a tendency to drink too much so Armin offered to drive. 

“How's Mikasa doing? You hear from her lately?” Armin asked as they pulled out of the parking lot.

“She's good. She sent me a message the other day talking about her job and to let me know how our parents are doing.” Mikasa still lived back in their hometown, Shinganshina. She took a couple years of college to become a personal trainer and now works at a local gym. Eren missed her most days, but they made sure to stay in touch. “She said she's planning on coming up to visit sometime soon. Although I'm not sure exactly when. It'll be nice to see her!” Eren smiled. 

“That's good to hear. You'll have to let me know when she comes.” Armin smiled back. The three of them were always close and it felt empty without Mikasa around. A reunion was always welcomed. Armin flipped on some music to keep the mood light as they finished their drive.

 

It was about 9:00 and the strip was starting to fill up with people. Finding a parking space wasn't always an easy task, but somehow Armin managed to nab a good spot directly across from Wall Maria. As Eren got out of the car and looked to the familiar lit-up logo, he noticed the new, brighter logo on the building next door. 

 _Wings_.

Eren thought that was a weird name for a bar. Above the lettering there was a symbol with two different colored wings overlapping one another, a dark blue wing on the bottom and a white wing on the top. It was interesting to say the least. “That must be the new bar.” He commented before noticing Armin had already grabbed his wrist. 

“C'mon let's go check it out!” He said with much enthusiasm as he dragged Eren across the street. When they entered the bar, Eren stood in surprise. It wasn't at all what he expected. It was simple. Small, even. There were a few tall round tables with bar stools placed around them. One of them was filled with people but the other two were empty. Directly across from the tables was the bar where two bartenders were shifting around each other. Most of the seats were taken already. Eren couldn't help but wonder what could possibly be so special about this place. He searched to see if there was anything else but all he saw was a hallway leading to a back door. Maybe this wasn't the right place?

“Auruo, stop!” Eren heard a female voice shout before hearing the sound of shattering glass. He looked back over to the bar to see a woman with ash-blonde hair slap a hand across her face as the man next to her crouched down to clean the mess that he made. “Auruo, that's the third time this week you've broken a bottle! Don't try doing those complicated spins until you've had enough practice! You're not Levi!” She scolded. Eren assumed she was referring to the bartender that everyone talked about and guessed he wasn't here tonight. He walked up to the bar and Armin followed. They took the two remaining seats at the bar and waited. 

Auruo was the one to eventually approach them. “You kids got your ID's?” He asked. Eren could immediately tell this man was rough around the edges, and while he had no clue what age he was it was apparent that he wasn't aging well. The two of them pulled out their ID's and Auruo asked them what they wanted to drink. Eren settled for a shot of Bacardi while Armin got some mixed drink.

“So is this all there is? I've heard a lot of talk about this place and it's not really what I expected.” Eren asked. Auruo chuckled. 

“Open your eyes and look across the room.” He pointed to the back of the room across from the entrance where Eren saw the hallway. There was a stairway just off to the side. How Eren missed it before he wasn't sure, but it was definitely there. “If you want to get in on all the action, there's the direction you need to go.”

“Is that really good flair bartender working tonight? I hear a lot about him!” Armin questioned with a glint in his eyes. Eren figured Armin was curious. He was a little curious himself. 

“Of course he's here! Levi always works on the weekends. That's when we make the most money.” Auruo responded as if Armin asked the most preposterous question in existence. “But I'll tell you right now, if you intend to watch him, you better intend on leaving him a nice tip.” Both of them considered what he said and headed toward the stairs, Armin keeping his drink in hand.

“What are you drinking again?” Eren asked. 

“It's a White Russian. Do you want to try?” Armin offered, but Eren scoffed at the drink. As they headed down the stairs, they noticed music was filling the space below. It was considerably darker than the top level, although the walls were covered in neon lights. It was slightly bigger than the upper floor, but not impressively so. There was an area that allowed enough space to dance, and a couple of tables intended for customers to play beer pong on. A few round tables were set around here and there, and there was a DJ stand in the corner. Armin stopped to look at the DJ for a moment, and almost seemed to be in a trance. Eren noticed quickly enough and waved a hand in front of Armin's eyes.

“Hello... Armin!” He snapped out of it and turned his attention to Eren. “There's another area back here.” To the side of the stairway was another hallway leading to one more room on the lower floor where there was a second bar. It was definitely more crowded here but the walls were covered with booths where many people were sitting. Still, no sign of this glorified flair bartender to be found. 

“Maybe he's on break.” Armin said as he found a spot at the bar to sit. He took the only remaining chair but it was at the corner so Eren leaned against the stand next to him. He looked at the guy that was currently running things behind the bar stand, hoping he'd come over so he could order another shot. The man had long blond hair that he put up in a ponytail and a small beard on his chin. He approached quickly enough. This man didn't bother asking for an ID but got straight to the point.

“A shot of Bacardi please. Actually.. Make that a double shot.” Eren ordered. The man prepared his drink quickly and handed it over. “So where's Mr. Incredible? We came to see what all the fuss was about and he's nowhere to be found.” 

“Mr. Incredible," The man laughed. "You mean Levi, right?”

“Yeah, sure, whatever his name is.” Eren replied before downing his shot. 

“We just heard through the grapevine that he's really good, and we wanted to come see for ourselves!” Armin interjected.

“He's here. But the fun doesn't start until 10. You kids are a little early. Stick around, you won't be disappointed.” The man smiled. “I'm Erd, by the way. Let me know if you two need anything while you're waiting.” And with that he walked away to the other side of the bar. 

“What is there, like, a show? Do bars normally do that?” Eren looked at Armin with furrowed brows. Armin just shrugged back at him.

“I wouldn't question it.” Armin said simply before sipping at his drink. “Sure you don't want to take a sip? This is really good.” But Eren declined again. He was already beginning to feel the effects of the Bacardi and if he wanted to get more of this sensation he would do it the quick and easy way. 

The time went by quickly enough. During that time, Armin had gotten started on his second drink and Eren had to get a couple of girls to back off of them. It was fascinating how some people could be so inebriated so early in the night. Eren downed another shot of Bacardi but not too soon before everyone in the room rang into loud cheers and claps. He looked behind him in the direction everyone was facing and saw who must have been Levi walking toward the room. 

He was surprised. The man was short. Really short. And he didn't look at all like the type of person who would do tricks to please other people. His stoic expression didn't falter a bit as he entered the room and made his way behind the bar stand. He dressed classy, wearing a white button up shirt with a black silk vest. What threw Eren off about his outfit was that he was wearing a cravat around his neck. Did people even wear those anymore? Eren didn't know. But it somehow worked on the man. He wore his hair long on the top with an undercut, his bangs falling over his eyes when he angled his head a certain way. 

Once Eren got a closer look at his face, he noticed the delicate features. The man had heavy-lidded silver eyes that would probably look bad on anyone else, he had a thin upper lip, and incredibly soft cheeks. He was gorgeous somehow and Eren could feel heat rising in his cheeks when they made eye-contact for a brief moment. 

“Shit.” Eren breathed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi does his flair routine. Eren gets drunk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been struggling with this chapter all week so I apologize if it seems a little rough. I think I'm about as satisfied with it as I'm going to get. I actually had it going in a completely different direction at one point and ended up rewriting the entire latter half. I like it this way better. Also, I think it's a little dialogue heavy and I apologize for that as well.
> 
> Describing flair is hard and I feel like I'm reusing the same words too much. Anyway.. Shout out to the song "Hot Hot Hot" by Baxter Poindexter. I heard this on Slacker when I was at work and decided it was perfect for Levi's flair routine.  
> Also drunk Eren was a challenge for me and I'm still not sure about it. But what the heck, we'll go with it. 
> 
> I think I'll be able to get the ball rolling pretty well in the next chapter since it'll be the beginning of where I want everything to go. 
> 
> Oh, and if anyone's curious my tumblr is erens-jaeger-bombs and if you want I guess I made a tag - fic: the bartender

Eren watched as Levi set up a few bottles and some mixing cups. He'd never actually seen bar flair before and didn't really know what to expect. When Levi looked like everything was set up to his satisfaction, Eren saw Erd out of the corner of his eye giving a thumbs up to the DJ. Without much more warning than that gesture could have given, the music started with a loud “Olay, olay!”

Levi started off his routine by grabbing two mixing cups and a full bottle of liquor. He juggled the three items for a moment and then tossed the bottle into the air from behind his back, catching it in one of the cups. He quickly heaved it out of the mixing cup back into the air and managed to catch it with the top of his forearm. This action was accompanied by loud cheering and Eren stared in awe as the bartender managed to balance the bottle of liquor for several seconds. Levi bounced the bottle off of his arm, and then again off of his elbow, only to continue his juggling trick a little longer, shifting between throwing the objects in front of him and behind him, turning his body around in the process.

Eren could barely process what was happening. Levi moved with such precision and grace, not faltering for a moment or slipping up his routine. What baffled him even more was the fact that Levi's expression hadn't changed even once. Like this was a completely natural thing to him and he didn't even have to think or concentrate. Levi stopped the action for a moment to pour some of the alcohol into a mixing cup standing on the counter. He paused for a brief moment, turned his back to the bar stand and shook his hips rhythmically to the words “hot hot hot”, which was rewarded with more cheering, and resumed his routine. Eren couldn't help but smile widely. This was fun to watch and he now understood what the hype was about.

Levi put down the two mixing cups and replaced them with bottles of liquor. He resumed with a typical juggle, occasionally rolling one of the bottles up or down his arm. His routine was very fluid as he transitioned from juggling, to tossing behind his back, to balancing bottles on random body parts. He started to be slightly more expressive about halfway through the song, even going so far as to wink at the crowd and give a small smirk during the slower bridge of the song and the women in the crowd suddenly filled the room with noise. _So he_ did _enjoy this after all_ , Eren thought.

Levi spent the last portion of his routine working between juggling bottles, pouring the liquids into a couple of mixing cups and tossing around the liquid filled mixing cups, exchanging fluid from one cup to the other on a few tosses. All without spilling a single drop. Eren was absolutely captivated by this man's talent. He finished his routine when the song ended and everyone in the bar rang loudly and applauded Levi's performance, giving a standing ovation. He raised his arms with a little flick of the wrists for show and gave a graceful bow to the audience with a half-smile on his face.

“That was so awesome!” Armin mouthed. Eren just smiled and nodded in agreement, still clapping his hands together. He looked to see Levi pouring the mixed drinks into a multitude of small shot glasses. The bar quieted down during this time. Levi grabbed one set of shot glasses to hand them out to those who were sitting at the bar stand, starting on the side furthest from the two boys.

“Come get a free shot!” Erd announced loudly, and almost everyone else in the room made their way to the bar stand in a rather disorderly fashion. Eren's stomach turned slightly as Levi got closer. He noticed Armin had out a five dollar bill ready to tip him with, so he reached into his pocket, which was always a mess, and pulled out the first wadded up bill that he felt, not bothering to look at it. He felt heat rising in his cheeks as Levi finally approached them with two shots glasses left.

“Haven't seen you guys here before. Names?” He asked as he handed the two their free shots. His voice was sultry and enticing. Eren opened his mouth but nothing came out. Was he really this nervous? Levi was just a guy and wasn't attracted to men. He decided to blame his fluttering stomach on the alcohol.

“I'm Armin and that's Eren.” Always like Armin to save the day. He handed over his tip. “That was really impressive!” he added ecstatically. Levi shrugged.

“It puts bread on the table.” He looked over to Eren, eyeing him up and down for a moment. “So do you have a tip for me or am I going to have to reach into your pocket myself?” he raised an eyebrow. Eren felt even more flustered at the suggestion.

“N-No! I have it right here!” He sputtered and handed over the scrunched up bill that was in his hand. Levi flattened the bill out and gave Eren a smirk before putting it in his own pocket.

“Thanks, kid. I look forward to seeing you in my bar again.” And with that, he walked away from the two and started tidying up the bar stand. Eren stared at him as he walked away. He would never admit that his eyes may have wandered down to the man's ass.

“You _are_ aware that you just gave him twenty dollars, right?” Armin's voice shook him out of his daze.

“What!? No, I gave him a five!” Eren insisted. Armin just giggled.

“How drunk are you anyway?”

“I'm not even drunk!” That was a lie.

Armin raised his shot glass. “Well, this is free, so let's drink up!” Eren grabbed his shot and clinked it together with Armin's before they both chugged them down quickly. The drink was smooth. He could barely tell there was alcohol in it. In fact, it tasted more like butterscotch than anything. It was delicious and he would have been lying if he said he didn't want another one. Armin peeked over Eren's shoulder and gave him a smile. “You mind if I get up for a few minutes?”

Eren waved his hand dismissively. “Nah, I'm fine here. I'm going to take your seat though.” He answered. Armin got up and Eren did as he said he would. He was losing his ability to really focus on much of anything, but he was determined that he wasn't done drinking. He reached into his pocket to pull out the only remaining bill left, a ten. _Enough for one more shot. How disappointing_.

Someone sat down beside him but Eren didn't bother to look. Instead he just stared up at one of the TV’s in the room which was playing some show that he didn't recognize. “Well you're a new face here.” The man chimed. Eren looked over. He was very tan, short brown hair and his face was covered in freckles.

“Yeah, my friend and I haven't checked out the bar yet and we wanted to celebrate the end of the semester so here we are.” Eren replied, trying to match the tone of his voice to the stranger's.

“Where's your friend at?” he asked.

“Oh, he said he was just getting up but I think he's going to go and try to talk to that DJ. He was eyeing him earlier.” Eren answered. The man giggled.

“The DJ is my boyfriend.” Eren's eyes widened.

“Oh, God! Do you want me to go get him? I don't want him to bother-”

“It's okay!” the stranger cut off. “Jean loves talking to new people. But he's faithful!” He noticed Eren look in the direction Armin went and back over to him with a worried face and decided to change the subject. “I'm Marco.” He reached out his hand. Eren mirrored his action and shook his hand.

“I'm Eren.”

“Would you like to share a pitcher with me? I'm stuck here until Jean's done for the night.” Marco offered. Eren nodded in agreement. He'd probably had enough liquor for one night anyway and he wasn't about to say no to free alcohol. Marco flagged Erd over and ordered the beer. The two of them drank together for the majority of the night at the bar stand, Eren occasionally flickering his eyes to glance at Levi. Marco talked about Jean and his passion for music, about himself and his passion for art. Eren talked a lot about Armin and Mikasa, but rarely about himself. They shared a few jokes and poked fun at things that would flash on the television. Eren knew very quickly that a seed had been planted and that a guy like Marco would be a wonderful friend to have. He'd make sure to have more conversations with him in the future.

It was around one o'clock and Eren was feeling very inebriated. The liquor had caught up to him a while ago but the beer only added to his haze. He considered interrupting Armin so that he could be taken home until he noticed Levi out of the corner of his eye walking away from the bar stand.

“You mind if I get up for a sec? I really need to pee” Eren asked. Marco smiled and gestured for him to go. “I'll be right back. Promise.” Eren got up, stumbled a bit in the process, and looked to see where Levi had gotten to. He found him walking past the DJ stand, opening a door that led to a flight of stairs. Eren quickly pursued, running into a couple people on the way and apologizing. Once he opened the door, he saw that the stairs led outside. He walked up them to find the back parking lot. The cool air felt nice after being surrounded by bodies in the bar for so long.

“Are you following me?” Levi was standing against the wall just outside the door, a cigarette lit up in his hand. Eren looked at him and blushed, trying to think of something to say.

“Where did you learn all that? It's really good.” He asked, slowly pressing his back against the wall to keep from tipping over.

“Doesn't really matter.” Levi answered before inhaling his cigarette. He blew out the smoke. “You look pretty hammered kid, I hope you didn't come out here to find your car.”

“I didn't drive.”

“Good.” He took another inhale of his cigarette. The two stood in silence for a few minutes until Levi finished smoking. He flicked the cigarette out of his hand onto the ground. “Well, that was engaging. Let's chat again soon, hm?” He said sarcastically before turning to walk back inside. Eren grabbed his arm.

“Wait.” Levi turned his head to look back to Eren, who, once again, couldn't think of anything to say.

“I don't have all night to deal with your drunken shit, kid, spit it out or let me go.”

Eren really couldn't focus on anything, let alone think of coherent things to say. He wasn't even sure he'd remember this in the morning. But he knew he wanted to say something so he sputtered out the first words that came to his mind. “You have a really nice ass.”

Levi didn't look phased at all. He simply raised an eyebrow at the comment. “You should probably find your friend to take you home.”

“I'm serious I would tap that... you... God, you're pretty.” Eren slurred. Levi let out a chuckle that he wanted to hold back. The boy was cute, and if he were sober, Levi might have toyed with him a bit, but now wasn't the time.

“You're trashed. Let's find your friend.” He grabbed Eren's hand and dragged him down the stairs back into the bar. Eren spotted Armin once they got back inside.

“Armin, look!” He shouted as he raised the hand Levi's hand was attached to. Levi pulled away instantly.

“What are you-”

“I'm with the sexy bartender!” Eren yelled. Levi blushed, something he didn't normally do.

“Hey, idiot, take it down a notch!” he snarled.

Armin observed that Eren wasn't acting like his usual self. He looked over at the DJ. “Jean, I should get him home. Are you going to be here tomorrow night?” He asked.

“I'm always here on the weekends.” Jean smiled. Armin gave him a wave and went to relieve Levi of a very drunk Eren.

“I'm so sorry.” He said as he took hold of his friend's hand.

“It's fine. Just get him out of here before he starts bothering people.” Levi replied irritably before walking away to go upstairs.

“Where's Marco? I need to see Marco.” Eren said as Armin started to direct him out of the bar.

“Eren we need to-”

“Shhh!” Eren interrupted, putting his index finger sloppily against Armin's lips. “I told him I would come back and I'm.... not leaving until I say bye.” he slurred. He grabbed Armin's hand and started to drag him in the direction of the downstairs bar. Armin had no choice but to let him do what he wanted to do. Marco hadn't moved from his spot.

“This must be Armin!” He said, happy to see Eren return. Armin waved and smiled sheepishly.

“Look, he's really drunk and we really need to go.” Armin said.

“Oh that's right!” Eren chimed in. “Marco is Jean's boyfriend!”

“I know-”

“So don't flirt with Jean anymore! That's very rude!” Eren pointed a finger at his friend. Armin blushed a deep shade of red at that comment. Marco laughed.

“Don't worry about it.” He said reassuringly. He turned his attention back to Eren “I'll see you around. You better go home and get some rest.”

“You're awesome, man. Let's chill again sometime!” Eren said, putting out his hand for a fist-bump to which Marco obliged.

Armin struggled to get Eren out to the car. If he wasn't stumbling over his own feet, he was trying to strike conversations with random strangers on the way out. And when he got one last glance at Levi behind the upstairs bar stand he stopped Armin to shout “I'll see you tomorrow!” before Armin mouthed another apology and shoved Eren out the door. They eventually got to the car and Armin started on the way back to Eren's apartment. He figured that lecturing him would be pointless at the moment since Eren wouldn't remember anything he said in the morning. So he listened to Eren's drunk musings instead.

He helped Eren up to his apartment and got him inside, gave him a cup of water to help get him hydrated and guided him back to his bedroom. He sat with him until he fell asleep, listening to him muttering things like, “I don't like guys” and“we need to go back tomorrow” and “you need to meet Marco” and so on. He gave Armin an apology for having to be taken care of before finally dozing off. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry there isn't more Eren/Levi interaction. I promise there'll be much more in the next chapter! I tried to do more with them here but it just wasn't working out the way I wanted. D:
> 
> But Marco's super cool! Yay!! 
> 
> I read through this and edited little pieces here and there like 30 times throughout the day so if there are still any errors I am sorry. It's 1:15 in the morning now and I'm too tired to care. Feel free to point anything out.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren's day starts off rough and he doesn't remember much from the night before. Armin kind of admits to liking Jean. Levi gives Eren an offer he can't refuse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant to have this up a couple days ago but I'm so good at procrastinating that I even put off doing things I genuinely want to be doing. 
> 
> It's come to my attention that I could improve on my diction, so I tried focusing on that while writing this. I think it's flowing a little better but... well, it's a work in progress. 
> 
> I don't have much else to say, so enjoy! :)

All Eren could manage to do today was sulk. He knew that he was going to lose his job and it's not like he even wanted to work for the pizza joint anymore, but he couldn't help but feel like a total piece of garbage. It didn't help that he had a throbbing headache and no coffee to help kill his hangover, waking up to a phone call to inform him that he is out of a job wasn't the best way to start the day. _I should go to the gas station and get some coffee,_ he thought, _but I don't want to get up._ It was around noon and he was still laying in bed when he felt his phone vibrate. Thinking it was Armin, he picked it up and let out a groan when he saw it was someone else. 

 **Mikasa:** Hey Eren, how did exams go? 

He definitely did not want to talk about exams.

 **Eren:** they were fine im sure i passed

 **Mikasa:** That doesn't sound too convincing.

 **Eren:**  its fine is there something else u wanted? i feel like shit and im trying to sleep 

He missed Mikasa, honestly, but he just felt awful and holding a conversation with her wasn't something he was feeling up to at the moment.

 **Mikasa:** Were you drinking last night?

 **Eren:** i only had a couple drinks no big deal

 **Mikasa:** Eren, you always drink too much when you go out. I wish you wouldn't.

 **Eren:**  its not really ur business

 **Mikasa:** Well excuse me for being worried. 

Eren didn't feel the need to respond to her any more. Mikasa was always protective of him and it started a lot of arguments between them. He put the phone down and with a loud grunt managed to pull himself out of bed, walked across the hall to the bathroom and decided a shower would make him feel better. He tried recalling the events of last night, but the last part he could remember was meeting Marco and sharing a pitcher of beer with him. _He seemed really nice_ , he thought. _I really hope I get a chance to meet him again._

His shower took longer than normal as he let his mind wander. He thought about where he should try and apply for a new job and worried about how he was going to pay his rent in a couple weeks. He figured his last paycheck should hold him over for a short while but he didn't have any money saved up for this kind of situation and he kicked himself mentally for not planning ahead and being irresponsible, asking himself aloud why he's such an idiot. In an effort to think about less negative things, he allowed his mind to roam some more, and eventually found himself thinking about the bartender he saw last night. His thoughts were innocent. He recalled how talented he was and how astounded it made him. He wondered how long it took him to learn how to do something like and thought _he_ would want to try learning just to see what it's like.

Once Eren was done with his shower he dried off and wrapped his towel around his waist. Too lazy to put on clothes just yet, he went into his kitchen and opened his fridge to find there really wasn't much there besides a half-empty gallon of milk, some pudding cups, various condiments and meat he wasn't in the mood to cook. He let out a deep sigh and made his way back to his bedroom to check his phone.

 **Mikasa:** Just so you're aware, I'm planning on coming up sometime next month. I'm not sure of the exact date but I'll let you know for sure. Please don't do anything stupid.

She'd sent it not too long after Eren jumped in the shower. He took a mental note of the message and didn't respond. Instead, he opened up his contact list and hit the name on top to make his phone call. The line rang for about 15 seconds before there was an answer.

“How are you feeling?” Armin asked on the other end.

“I feel like shit,” Eren groaned. “I have a hangover from hell and my boss called me a couple hours ago to tell me I'm out of a job. I'm hungry.”

“I told you to stop skipping out on your job.” Armin's tone was stern and scolding. Eren slumped his shoulders and let out a deep sigh, knowing his best friend was disappointed in him. But who could blame him, he was disappointed in himself as well. He had no idea what he was doing with his life and everything always seemed so meaningless.

After a long pause, he heard Armin sigh on the other end. “Do you want to go get some pancakes? I'll buy.”

“I think that would be really great.”  

* * *

  

“What happened last night anyway? I remember you getting up. I assume you went to try and talk to that DJ?” Eren asked after the two of them had placed their orders. He was relieved to get some coffee in his system and was glad that Armin picked IHOP because they made delicious flavored iced coffee.

Armin blushed after Eren asked about his whereabouts the night before. “Um, yeah. His name is Jean. I guess he goes to Trost University like us and he's a music major concentrating on technical music.” He was twiddling his thumbs and looking out the window, avoiding eye contact with Eren. 

“Do you like him?” Eren asked. He wasn't about to dance around the subject because it was already obvious.

Armin stopped playing with his thumbs and let out a nervous chuckle. “Um... Well he's cute and all but he's dating that Marco guy you were hanging around with. But you already know that.” he looked up at Eren looking as though he was expecting disapproval. 

“It's okay to like him, you know,” Eren stated. “Just, you know... Don't make any moves on him or anything.” Eren didn't really expect Armin would and was surprised he even went to talk to him last night. Armin was always really shy about pursuing people that he liked, and this character trait seemed to have gotten worse since he stopped hiding the fact that he likes men. Eren admitted it was nice to see Armin actually attempt to approach someone he's interested in the night before and he was proud of him. Armin waved his hand in a gesture that he wanted to change the subject.

“It's nothing to worry about really,” he smiled nervously. “What's the last thing you remember last night? You got pretty drunk.” 

“Oh, I was drinking some beer with Marco and we were just chatting. But honestly I can't recall anything after that. I think I remember you helping me out in my apartment but nothing else is coming to mind.” Eren took a sip of his coffee, hoping Armin would inform him of how the rest of the night went.

“Oh, so you don't remember hanging around with that bartender?” Armin asked, lazily pointing a finger in his direction. 

Eren's eyes widened. “What?”

Armin covered his mouth with the back of his hand and giggled. “He brought you to me and you were being really goofy. No big deal, you just had a bit too much to drink. We went home right after.”

“Wait, which bartender are you-”

“Levi, I think his name was, right?”

Eren buried his hands in his face trying to cover his obvious embarrassment. “What was I doing?”

“Don't worry about it, it wasn't that bad.” Armin said reassuringly. Honestly, he didn't know if he should tell Eren about the comments he had made regarding Levi because Eren had never admitted to liking guys at all and he wasn't sure that he was really even ready, so he figured the subject was best left alone for the time being. He changed the topic and the two of them engaged in small talk over pancakes. They decided together that they would go back to the bar again that night, but only because Armin wanted to see Jean again. Eren made Armin agree to buy his drinks under the condition that “I'm only going with so you're not there all alone” but Eren knew who he wanted to see again, even though he wouldn't admit it. 

* * *

 

Nightfall came soon enough and the two friends made their way down to the bar. It was chilly for a May night and Eren chose to bundle up in a hoodie. Armin commented that Eren was horrible at dealing with cold air and that “60 degrees isn't that cold.” Eren always preferred the summer months and was willing to deal with the humidity over the frigid cold of winter any day. When they approached the strip, he wasn't sure if he was ready to go inside of Wings just yet so he asked Armin for a few bucks and decided he would take a visit to Wall Maria first. He gave him just enough for one shot and asked him to say hi to Annie on his behalf. 

“Hey, Jaeger! It's been a while!” Eren was welcomed by a rather burly man with short blond hair.

“Hey, Reiner. How are things going, man?” He reached out his hand for a fist bump. 

“Pretty good. Not a whole lot of new stuff going on. A little less business since that new bar opened but nothing that's really affecting us too much.” Reiner answered as he returned Eren's fist-bump. “So where have you been? I feel like I haven't seen you in weeks!”

“Just busy with school. You know how things get toward the end of the semester.” He said as he handed Reiner the ten dollar bill Armin had given him. “I'll just take my usual.” he added. Reiner got him a shot of Bacardi ready and mixed up a Jager bomb on the side. When he had learned Eren's last name it was apparently one of the 'coolest things ever' and Reiner had always made it a point to give him a free Jager bomb whenever he came in for a drink. Eren would never choose to drink this normally – he hated Jager – but he'd still chug it for Reiner's sake. He started to search around the bar with his eyes and Reiner noticed it quickly enough. 

“She's not here tonight. She actually won't be back for a while. Her father is sick so she went back home to help take care of him for a bit.” He informed. Eren knew he was talking about Annie and couldn't help but feel his stomach drop.

“That's too bad. I really wanted to see her.” the disappointment in his voice was obvious. He'd really missed having his buzzed chats with Annie and was looking forward to seeing her for even just a little bit tonight. Anything to get his mind away from his toxic thoughts. He took his shots and held a conversation with Reiner for a while before letting him know that Armin was waiting for him at Wings and headed out of the bar. 

It was relatively late by the time Eren walked into the bar – around ten thirty to be exact – and the same bartenders from the night before were working the upstairs bar again. Shying away from the possibility of interacting with Auruo again, Eren quickly made his way downstairs. He checked the DJ stand to see if Armin was there with Jean and, as expected, he was. Armin glanced up to see that Eren was in the bar and gave him a wave to let him know he'd been spotted. He waved back to his friend and made his way to the downstairs bar, and when he noticed Levi working behind the stand, his stomach was doing back flips. He sat down in the stool that he had occupied the night before and was quickly greeted.

“Has anyone ever told you that you're an obnoxious little shit when you drink?” Eren looked up to see Levi standing before him. Although there wasn't much to him, Eren couldn't help but feel intimidated by his appearance. He was short but he managed to hold himself tall nonetheless. His stomach had gone from simply doing back flips to going completely berserk, and while he wanted to retort, he found himself unable to find any good words. 

“Sorry.” he muttered.

“Well, what's it going to be tonight?” Levi asked, crossing his arms and jutting his hip to the side. 

“Oh. I don't have any money on me.” Eren answered as his eyes wandered lower to look over Levi's posture.

“Then why the hell are you at my bar?” 

“Armin wanted to come and see the DJ again and I didn't want him to come alone.” He looked to the side, crossing his arms over the bar stand. It was mostly the truth, although Eren couldn't deny that he wanted to be here too.

Levi stared at Eren for a brief moment and studied his sulking expression before replying, “Just tell me what you want to drink." 

“I said I don't have any-”

“Do you like mixed drinks? Do you want a shot? Hell, I'll serve you a damn pitcher if you want. Just tell me what you want to drink.” Levi's tone sounded impatient. Eren hesitated for a moment and looked up at Levi who was now leaning over the bar stand himself and he met his gaze for a brief moment. 

“I usually just get a shot of Bacardi.” He said as he broke eye contact. Levi walked away and Eren watched as he went to grab a bottle of liquor. He didn't do any fancy bottle tossing or mixing like Eren saw him do for customers the previous night, but instead just grabbed a small shot glass and filled it up meticulously before walking back over and handing it to him.

“My treat.” Levi said. Eren looked back up to him for a moment before thanking him and drinking the shot. “You look down. Your boyfriend dump you or something?” Eren was glad he'd already swallowed the shot because he might have spat it out. 

“Huh? No. I don't have a boyfriend, I don't even like...” he felt his cheeks flush as he noticed Levi was staring directly at his eyes. “I just... It's just...” Why was he fumbling his words? “I just lost my job that's all, and I'm feeling kind of down about it. I don't really have anything saved up and I can't go too long without a new one or I won't be able to pay my bills.”

Levi's expression didn't change at all. “That sucks. Where were you working?” 

“Oh. I worked in the kitchen at Shadis' Pizza Shoppe.”

“I say count your blessings. That place is a dive.” Levi said flatly. “You don't seem completely stupid. I'm sure you'll figure something out.” Eren wasn't sure if he'd just received a compliment but hearing Levi say that made his stomach flutter. 

Levi turned to walk away and, not wanting him to walk away just yet, Eren asked, “You guys don't need anyone here do you?” The question came out of his mouth louder than intended and even a bit urgently. Levi turned back to face him, eyed him over and quirked an eyebrow.

“Sorry, kid, we've pretty much got what we need right now.” He replied, and Eren looked down to mumble an apology for asking. Levi leaned over against the bar stand once more, his face inches away from Eren's. “It was Eren, right?” Eren looked into his steel colored eyes and they were worn, like it was all too obvious that this guy has been through some shit. He hadn't noticed the dark circles beneath them before and suddenly they became so prominent and Eren couldn't help but wonder why they looked so jaded. 

“Yeah,” he breathed. “Eren Jaeger.”

“Hm.” Levi hummed. “I like your name. It's easy to remember.” He stood back upright and looked down the bar stand where the other customers were sitting. There was a different bartender here tonight in Erd's place and he'd been taking care of all of them while Levi stopped to talk to Eren. “I need to get back to work. Maybe you should go hang out with your friend, make sure he's not making too many moves on Jean.” 

“Oh, Armin's fine. I-”

“Jean's not a bad guy, but he has a wandering eye,” Levi interrupted. He didn't turn his head, but he moved his eyes to glance back at Eren. “I'm not saying your friend is a bad person for trying to get to know him, but Marco's a nice kid and I'd hate to see him get fucked over." 

Eren was so caught up in his current interactions with Levi that he had almost forgotten he wanted to see Marco again. “Does he come here often?”

“Most nights. I never see him on Saturdays though. Jean usually invites people over after the bar closes on the weekends and I think Marco stays behind to make sure that there's enough entertainment for those who choose to come.” Levi answered and he gave a small smirk. “He's like a trained little dog Jean has wrapped around his finger.” He twirled his index finger around in the air. Eren looked away in the direction of the DJ stand where Armin and Jean were still sitting and felt his stomach drop. He stood up and pushed his chair in. 

“Alright, I'll catch you later I guess. Thanks for the shot.”

“No problem, kid.” 

Eren trusted Armin not to allow anything to happen if Jean were to make a move on him, but he still didn't like the situation. Sure, he'd only known Marco for a night, but he didn't want his friend to get in the way of someone else's relationship. He also couldn't help but think that if Jean were to be unfaithful to a good guy like Marco, maybe he wasn't really such a good guy after all, and that Marco didn't deserve him. Armin wouldn't deserve a boyfriend like that either, and Eren had always been protective of his best friend. Lost in thought, he found his way to the DJ stand quicker than he anticipated. He stood next to Armin and leaned into his ear.

“I think we should go.” Armin just looked over to him and smiled. 

“Why don't you hang with us for a while? Jean was just talking about inviting us to his house tonight!” Eren studied his friend's face and how lit up his eyes were. Armin wasn't the type to get out too often because he was always studying and reading, and Eren couldn't deny that some more social interaction would probably be beneficial for him. He couldn't say no to the face he was making.

Jean was busy tinkering around with his equipment while he had a song playing. Eren was surprised Armin could handle standing here all night, it seemed boring and he wasn't sure how they've managed to hold any kind of conversation. It seemed as though Jean got what he needed set up soon enough though, and he turned to face Eren before putting out his hand. 

“It's Eren, right?” he asked. Eren reached out his hand to meet Jean's and they shook for a brief moment before Jean added, “You were pretty hammered last night!” Eren blushed, wondering just how much of an ass he'd made of himself the night before.

“Well, Marco shared a pitcher with me and I guess I got a little faded after that!” He said it in a friendly manner, although his intentions were to remind Jean that he had a boyfriend waiting for him back at home. He'd already created a preconceived notion that Jean probably wasn't a good person like Armin and Levi said he was and he was going to make sure to keep Armin from getting too involved.

“Happens to the best of us!” Jean replied loudly over the music. “I was just inviting Armin over tonight to hang out with Marco and I. You should come too! Armin's been saying a lot of good things about you!” Eren wasn't really sure that he wanted to, but he agreed to anyway for Armin's sake. Two o'clock was already a late enough time to be out and he was a little concerned about how much longer Armin planned on being out for the night. He stayed at the DJ stand for the remainder of the night, engaging in conversation with Armin and listening to his conversations with Jean. Occasionally Levi would pass by to go outside for a smoke and Eren would follow him with his eyes, occasionally getting caught by Levi's own eyes, but he refrained from chasing him down. 

Finally, and much to Eren's relief, two o'clock rolled around and Jean was wrapping up his playlist with the song “Closing Time” by Semisonic. _How cliché_ , Eren thought as he glanced in the direction of the bar. Levi was scrubbing down the bar stand and seemed to be concentrating rather hard on one particular spot. He knew it'd still be a few minutes before they would leave since surely Jean had to pack some equipment away, so he walked over and sat down on the bar stool in front of the spot Levi was cleaning.

“Fucking idiots writing on my shit with permanent markers.” Levi grumbled through clenched teeth. “Fuck if they're ever allowed in my bar again.” Eren tried to suppress a chuckle and failed, only to be greeted with an angry glare from Levi. “You want a job, kid? Clean this fucking shit up.” He set the rag he was using down in front of Eren and crossed his arms. Eren looked down to see what had been written to find that someone had drawn a rather detailed dick. This time Eren didn't even try to hold back and he let out his laughter straight from his belly. 

“I'm sorry,” he said, trying to stop laughing when he noticed Levi wasn't amused in the slightest. “But it's funny. It's so detailed. Like, they drew the veins and the-”

“Shut it, Jaeger.” Levi cut him off as he grabbed the rag he'd been using. He let out a deep sigh. “I guess I'm going to have to go buy some stronger stuff and get this cleaned tomorrow.” He rubbed his hand behind his neck and turned his head slightly as if to release some tension. He turned away and continued to clean the area, putting bottles back up the shelf behind him, sopping up any water that was left around the ice bin and cleaning up a few alcohol spills. 

Eventually, Levi looked at Eren out of the corner of his eye as he continued to wipe up one last spot. “Can you start on Monday?”

“Huh?” 

“You need a job, right?” Levi stopped and looked up at Eren. “Can you be here on Monday at four? That's an hour before I open the bar. It'll give us enough time to go over the gist of everything. Of course, I'll probably have to pay you under the table for a few days until I can get all of your information through and get you officially hired and-”

“Wait a minute,” Eren cut in. “I thought you said you didn't need anyone new right now.” He heard Armin calling for him and saying that they were ready to leave. 

“Just say yes before I change my mind.” Levi insisted. Eren hesitated for a moment and knowing that having a job sooner than later would be to his benefit, decided to accept the offer.

“Alright. I'll be here.” Eren answered as he stood up. Levi dismissed him with a simple “Okay” and a wave of his hand and Eren left to head out with Armin and Jean, hoping the rest of the night wouldn't be as much of a drag as it had been, although now Eren definitely had a reason to lift his mood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, more Levi/Eren interaction! \\(^_^)/
> 
> Guys, I'm okay with constructive criticism. Please offer it if you think it'll help me to improve because I do want to be good at this and give you all something quality to read!  
> I didn't proofread this as thoroughly as I probably could have, so if there's an error, please let me know.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren decides that Jean isn't such a bad guy and he starts his first day at the bar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finished this late last night and have been putting off posting all day so here goes. lol 
> 
> As usual, feel free to point out any errors.

Eren was pleasantly surprised at how well the rest of his night went. He was skeptical about spending time around Jean and was nervous about how Armin would behave with him in front of Marco, although he wasn't sure exactly why he was worried. All in all, the night went well. 

When the three of them had arrived at Jean's house they were warmly welcomed by Marco who'd made a variety of foods to snack on and had a nice collection of beer set up in the fridge. Two other people, a boy and a girl around their age, had already been there when they arrived. They introduced themselves as Connie and Sasha, and right from the bat Eren could tell they were fun to be around by the way they were poking fun at each other. A couple of pranksters, probably. 

He looked around the house and was stunned by elaborate and colorful paintings that were hanging around throughout. Jean wrapped his arms lovingly around Marco as he explained that the paintings were all Marco's doing and that he was proud to showcase his lover's talent. Marco blushed a deep shade of red and asked Jean to stop bragging about him before he urged Eren and the others to dig into the food he prepared and Jean only embarrassed him further by planting playful kisses on his cheek. It really lifted a weight off of Eren's shoulders to see this display of affection although he still wasn't certain about Jean. He checked Armin to make sure he wasn't uncomfortable and he seemed to be content, smiling and telling Marco he's got a gift.

Not only was Marco a good painter, his food was delicious. He'd laid out some chips and homemade dip, cherry tomatoes stuffed with chicken salad, a fruit salad (made with marshmallows which was delicious) and he'd made up a cheese ball and surrounded it with crackers on a platter. Eren thought it was a bit much for such a small gathering of people but he didn't argue against it.

The night was spent eating, drinking beer and playing games. They started their game night by playing Clue. Eren hadn't played board games in a long time and it was a nice change. Armin managed to deduce that Colonal Mustard used a lead pipe in the billiard. Of course Armin managed to come to the right conclusion, Eren wasn't surprised.

They followed up Clue by playing a couple rounds of UNO. Eren and Jean got very competitive, skipping over each other and throwing draw cards down when the other's turn was after theirs. The rest just played along and watched the two of them go at each other in the form of cards.

Once they grew tired of UNO they decided to step things up and play a couple games of poker, using real money as the stakes of course. Eren protested at first because he had no money, but Armin threw some in on his behalf. Connie suggested playing strip poker instead but Sasha punched him hard in the arm at the suggestion saying, “That wouldn't be fair, I'm the only girl here you pervert!” which was followed up by a smile. It wouldn't have mattered if they played strip poker, however, because Sasha was surprisingly good at the card game and Eren was certain she'd have been the only one left with any clothes on by the time they got tired of playing.

Nobody went home that night. Once they tired of playing games, which was around six o'clock in the morning, Jean and Marco headed to bed and the other four stayed up talking until they all passed out in the living room. Eren was the first to wake up. He'd fallen asleep sitting upright on the couch and his neck was stiff. The sun was high and Eren guessed it was probably around eleven or so. He really needed to pee but he was unable to get up as his best friend had fallen asleep with his arms wrapped around Eren's waist and his head resting on his lap. If it were anyone else Eren wouldn't have been comfortable but he remembered cuddling up with Armin while they were talking, just for comfort's sake. They'd been friends for so long that such intimate behavior wasn't unnatural or unusual for them.

Marco was the second to wake up. He walked out to the living room, his hair a mess and wearing nothing but a pair of black sweatpants. His body was covered in freckles just as his face was and he was surprisingly toned, and Eren had to admit it was actually kind of cute. If he liked men, he thought, he'd consider Jean a lucky guy. Marco looked at Eren, helpless to move, and gave a soft chuckle. He spoke quietly afterward.

“Do you need anything to drink or to eat?”

“No. I just really, really have to pee.” Eren replied, eyebrows scrunching together and showing his discomfort. Marco gave a face to show he empathized with Eren's situation and suggested that he just get up and Eren insisted that he doesn't want to disturb his friend. However, his basic human need took over and he eventually gently pushed Armin off of his lap so he could get up. His friend squirmed and even let out a small moan but he didn't seem like he was ready to wake up quite yet. Once he was up he practically sprinted for the bathroom to take care of his business.

After relieving himself he walked back out into the kitchen where Marco was preparing a pot of coffee.

“Did you have a good time last night?” Marco asked, turning to face Eren. Eren made himself at home and took a seat at the table, picking up a couple of poker chips leftover from the night before and fiddling with them between his fingers.

“Yeah, I had a lot of fun. You guys do this every week?”

“Yeah, it's Jean's thing more than mine. But I like to make sure that it's enjoyable for everyone.” Marco answered. The pot of coffee was done brewing and he offered Eren a cup which he graciously accepted. The two sat at the table across from each other and continued their conversation.

“You and Jean seem really close.” Eren smiled. “How long have you guys been together?”

Marco looked into his cup and swirled the coffee around. “We've been together since high school. I was 15 when I moved here to Trost and we hit it off immediately. Of course, back then neither of us were exactly out of the closet. We started fooling around a bit when we were 16. It just kind of happened, and we were comfortable enough with each other that it didn't seem all that weird. We finally admitted that we had feelings for each other during our junior year of high school and became an 'official couple.'” He looked back up at Eren. “So I guess you could say we've been together for about four years now.”

Eren was impressed. “That's a long time.”

“Yeah. But we don't have a perfect relationship.” Marco answered, a kind of pained look in his eyes while he tried to give a convincing smile. “He's really passionate about music and I think that's wonderful. But I don't see him as often anymore since he started being a DJ at the bar. And I trust him fully and completely but I can't help but feel apprehensive sometimes when he comes home late. You know how crazy things can get when there's a bunch of drunk people around.”

“Do you think he's going to cheat or something?”

“No,” Marco started. “I'm honestly not worried about that. But I do worry for his safety. Sometimes he looks at people a certain way and I'm afraid it might provoke them.”

The room fell silent for a moment and Eren wasn't sure if he should change the topic. But Marco finally continued.

“I don't completely agree with the way that bar is run. Levi is a good guy. Heck, he's a _great_ guy even if he doesn't seem like it sometimes. He makes sure anyone who's harassing his customers is kicked out immediately. I've seen him on a few occasions take a guy or two out for starting shit in his bar, whether it be with his employees or another customer. I heard that he stopped an attempted sexual assault around the time the bar opened, and the girl he helped out still comes back and always gives him her thanks. He cares about people.”

Eren's stomach fluttered at the talk about Levi. He was glad to hear that he was a good person.

“He just doesn't monitor how much his employees drink. It's normal for bartenders to drink a little on the job. Customers buy them shots and he tells them that it's only polite to accept the drink. Jean drinks on the job sometimes because of this, because people insist on buying shots for the DJ.” He stopped for a moment. “I don't know, I just get worried.” He smiled and let out a soft chuckle.

“Well, I can tell he cares about you.” Eren said. And after seeing the two of them together he felt confident in that. “And I'm going to be starting at the bar on Monday, so I can make sure nothing happens to him.” he continued.

“You're going to work at the bar?” Marco asked.

“Yeah. I lost my job and Levi asked me to be there on Monday to start work.” Eren confirmed.

“That's odd. Levi's done nothing but turn down people who want a job there since the place opened. It's always been the same four bartenders and one other manager. And the owner, of course.” Marco stated.

“Wait, he doesn't own the bar?” Eren asked, confused. Marco shook his head to confirm. “Who owns it then?”

“The same guy who runs Wall Maria. I don't remember his name.” Eren didn't question further into it. He'd figure it out soon enough, he was sure. Their conversation came to an end as the others woke up. The group sat around the table drinking coffee, Connie and Sasha each grabbed a bowl of cereal to eat and they all conversed for about an hour before Jean and Marco decided it was time for everyone to leave.

 

* * *

 

Monday came soon enough. Eren was nervous for most of the day and completely unsure of what he should wear. He didn't really have anything fancy to dress up in, so he threw on his favorite tan t-shirt and denim jeans. He checked himself out in the mirror and made sure he looked presentable before leaving to head for the bar.

He showed up about 10 minutes early. He wanted to make a good impression, after all. He parked his truck in the back parking lot and entered the bar from the back entrance. He walked down the long stretch next to the stairs and found Levi behind the upstairs bar stocking bottles on the shelf. He was dressed just as casually as Eren was – wearing a black shirt and jeans – and Eren had to admit he looked pretty good in normal clothes.

“You aren't wearing a suit.” He pointed out. Levi turned to face him, his expression stayed neutral. 

“I don't have a dress code here, if that's what your implying,” he replied. “I don't perform on the weekdays so I don't make a show of myself.” He put the last bottle on the shelf and walked in Eren's direction, studying him up and down. Levi hadn't seen him in the daylight before. “Not bad.” He added. Eren wasn't sure what he meant by that.

“Um, what's not bad?” He asked, wanting some clarification. 

Levi replied bluntly, “It's good to have eye candy. We get more business.”

 _Is this is way of telling me I'm attractive?_ Eren thought nervously. “Um...”

“Alright, kid. You said you usually just take shots the other night, so I assume you don't know much about mixed drinks. That's going to be step one,” Levi started. “Depending on how well people seem to like you, I'll decide if I want you upstairs or downstairs for the long haul. But in the meantime I'm going to leave you in Petra's hands.” Eren assumed that Petra was the blonde woman he'd seen working the couple of times he'd been here before.

Levi continued to explain to how things work in the bar. Just as Marco had said, he told him to accept a shot if a customer buys one for him, although he did add that if he gets too drunk to work then there will be trouble. He let Eren know there was one other manager who worked there part time (Eren had never heard of a part-time manager before) named Hanji. He explained that she worked in some scientific field as her primary job, and added that she'd been sent on a trip that would take a couple of weeks.

“Are you interested in learning flair?” He asked. A question Eren wasn't exactly expecting.

“Um. Well...” Eren wanted to say yes, but at the same time he was unsure.

“Auruo's been taking classes trying to learn flair. He's getting pretty good at it, but I think he may have his sights set a little higher than some downtown bar in a college town.” Levi explained.

“I'll have to take a class if I say yes?”

Without any hesitation, and almost before Eren could even finish his question, Levi answered, “I'll teach you.”

Eren blushed before responding with an “oh.”

“I'll take that as a yes.” Levi said.

Eren heard the back door open. He turned his head to face the opposite side of the bar to see a tall, muscular-looking man with blond hair and an undercut walking in their direction.

“Oi, Erwin,” Levi greeted. “I wasn't expecting you to drop in today.”

“Don't sound so excited to see me,” Erwin replied teasingly. “I bought a pool table like you requested so I brought it here.” Eren looked to the man and tried to figure out who he was. He seemed familiar.

“Ah, I wasn't expecting to get it so soon.” Levi replied, a sound of satisfaction in his voice. “We'll have to move the second beer pong table to make room. Eren,” he faced the young adult. “Help me out.”

“Yes, sir.” Eren replied promptly before following Levi downstairs. “Who is that guy?” he asked.

“That's Erwin. He owns this bar and Wall Maria” Levi answered as he reached the bottom of the stairs. _So that's where I've seen him before_ , Eren thought.

He directed Eren to one of the beer pong tables and they lifted it together. Eren walked forward as Levi walked backward to direct him to what Eren assumed was a storage room. They struggled to get the table through the door, but with some maneuvering and a few irritable noises and grunts they were able to get it through.

The room was large, and Eren assumed that they were underneath Wall Maria. There was a fair amount of cleaning supplies including numerous brooms, mops and chemicals. Eren noticed there was an air hockey table, which confused him, and in the middle of the room was a beautiful pool table with a dark wooden finish and red cloth. It looked fairly old, but well taken care of.

“Is that the table?” He asked.

“No,” Levi answered as he walked over to the pool table and rested a hand on the edge. “This has been here for a long time, I guess. Erwin apparently bought it when he first opened Wall Maria, but it doesn't work. You put the money in, the balls don't come out. If you land a ball in one of the holes it goes into some deep abyss somewhere.” he explained.

“So instead of just getting it fixed, he orders a whole new table?” Eren questioned. It seemed as though the former option would be cheaper. Levi just shrugged, claiming that he doesn't really understand how Erwin operates. He'd just assumed that it wasn't fixable and that it was kept around for sentimentality of some sort.

“Do you play?” Eren asked. Levi turned in his direction.

“I'd kick your ass at pool.” he stated confidently. Eren would be sure to take him up on that challenge sometime.

Five o'clock came soon enough and Levi handed Eren over to Petra for training. She had a very cheerful and calming demeanor and Eren greatly regretted not getting her as a bartender on his first visit here. She told him the ins and outs of the job: how to clean and how often to clean (which was basically after doing anything because Levi had very high standards), how to mix any given drink that was ordered that night, how to talk to the customers and how to deal with less-than-desirable ones.

Petra was a very beautiful woman and Eren noticed a handful of men make inappropriate remarks to her throughout the evening. She'd giggle at them and try to shrug it off but Eren was sure comments like that bothered her.

“It comes with the territory,” She'd said when he asked her about it. “But Auruo's usually good about shoving off anyone who's getting particularly touchy. Levi does too if he happens to be up here.” Eren noticed how she smiled at mention of Auruo, but he took note of the prideful gleam in her eye when she said Levi's name. It was clear to him that she held him in high regard, possibly even cared for him as something more than a co-worker; more than a friend. It almost made his heart drop. Almost.

Once midnight rolled around, Levi came upstairs and asked Eren to go out to the back with him while he smoked.

“So is this something that's going to work for you, kid?” He asked as he handed Eren a small wad of money. Eren accepted the cash and nodded.

“Yeah, the job seems pretty easy,” he answered. “Petra is really nice. She seems to have a lot to say about you. I think she likes you.”

“Like? Are we in high school?” Levi scoffed. “She's not my type.” He brought his cigarette to his mouth and inhaled.

Naturally, Eren was curious. “What's your type?” Levi simply shook his head, which was enough of an indication that he wasn't going to touch anymore on the subject.

“Your shift's over. Go home.” He said. “Be back here tomorrow at the same time.” He flicked his cigarette away and moved to head inside. Before he walked through the door, however, Eren stopped him just as he did the first night he'd been here.

“You said you'd teach me flair.”

“Yeah.”

“I'll do it. I want to learn.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren's first flair lesson doesn't go too well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter's been complete for a few days but I've just been so sick with a cold I wasn't bothering to proofread it at all. Finally got around to it this morning so here you go! 
> 
> Things kind of start to finally happen. Kind of? The ball is set in motion anyway.  
> Levi's like a nagging parent when it comes to cleaning. I'm sure we all understand the feeling.
> 
> I'm not an expert on the process of learning flair. So I'm kind of writing blindly on this and I'm sorry if it's inaccurate. But since I assume the ability to do a basic juggling act is kind of essential to throwing around bottles of alcohol in the air, I assumed it was relevant.
> 
> tumblr: erens-jaeger-bombs  
> tag: fic: the bartender

“Oh God, Eren.” Levi's voice was exasperated. “No.” He paused as he observed his surroundings. “No, no, no.” 

“Um, Levi?”

“How do you live like this!?” He started going on as he began to grab plates and bowls from various places around Eren's living room. He paused for a moment and looked to Eren who was still standing in the doorway. “Well? Get your ass moving and let's get this place cleaned up you pig!”

It'd been about three weeks since Eren started at Wings. He still had a few things to learn and pick up on as far as drinks were concerned, but he was beyond the point of being a trainee by now. Levi was satisfied with his job performance and pleased at the fact that he was pretty good with people. Women came in and flirted with him, guys would joke around with him, and people in general just seemed to plain out like him.

“Fuck, Eren!” He shouted as he entered the kitchen with a stack of dishes in his arms. “You have a goddamn dishwasher! Put your dishes in there when you're done using them!”

Levi didn't particularly care for dishwashers – he washed his dishes by hand to ensure they were cleaned to his standards – but using one was better than leaving dishes laying around so he proceeded to load it up to save on time. He looked around and noticed there were used pots and pans on the stove, some nasty stuff that had dried onto the counter and... _Did this kid seriously leave out raw meat?_

Eren walked into the small the kitchen and saw Levi's disgusted expression as the man stared at a pound of ground beef sitting on his counter.

“I, uh...” He wrapped his hand around the nape of his neck. “I was going to cook some cheeseburgers but the meat was bad.”

“I should just leave right now.” Levi snapped his attention to Eren. “You're filthy! Absolutely filthy! I bet if I walk into your bathroom there's going to be piss all over the toilet seat and shit-stained underwear laying on the floor!”

If there was one expression that Eren had gotten used to seeing other than Levi's usual neutral expression, it was this one. That utterly pissed off and irritated look that left him feeling like a much smaller person. He hated this expression because it stirred up something inside of him that he wasn't sure he wanted to accept. Sometimes he just wanted to grab Levi by the face and-

“Eren!!” Levi snapped his fingers a couple times and Eren realized he'd been completely spacing off. “I agreed to teach you flair. I didn't agree to teach you in filth.”

Eren nodded in understanding.

“I'm going to the store to get some cleaning supplies, since I'm sure you don't have anything suitable to sanitize this damn place.” Levi said as he walked toward the door. “You better be cleaning what you can when I get back. Throw that vile meat away! I want these clothes picked up.” He looked over to Eren's TV stand which had even more dishes on it. “And pick up the rest of those dishes. They're fucking everywhere.”

Levi left, closing the door a little harder than he probably should have. Eren stood there for a moment in awe at how anal the man was about cleanliness. He began to do as Levi requested by first throwing away the bad meat, then he started picking up loose clothes laying around the apartment and followed that up with loading the rest of the dishes into his dishwasher. He checked the bathroom to make sure that there wasn't pee on the toilet seat. He admitted he had a tendency to miss sometimes in the middle of the night or if he'd had a little bit to drink. It looked pretty spotless at the moment so he didn't worry about it.

They agreed that Levi would teach him flair at his home. Eren originally thought they'd just do it in the bar but Levi stated that he didn't want anything to get broken or messed up there. He vehemently rejected Eren's suggestion to go to his place to learn, and so they agreed to do lessons at Eren's apartment a few days a week.

Time alone with him intimidated Eren. He wasn't sure entirely how he felt about Levi. He found himself more drawn to the man than he wanted to be, and it didn't seem like Levi was entirely perturbed by him either. But Eren had a hard time reading Levi, so he made sure not to act on any urges that he may have and did his best to keep his mouth shut.

Levi returned soon enough with a heap of cleaning supplies. He wasted no time in getting started. He barked orders at Eren for a good couple of hours and often interrupted him to show him how to “clean properly,” explaining how germs collect and how bacteria grows. At a few points Eren thought the guy was completely nuts.

Things calmed down when they finally finished. Levi had left the apartment once again to pick up some food for the two of them to eat – he didn't trust anything that Eren had – and they took a break. Levi hadn't spoken much to Eren outside of work-related issues so he decided to take the opportunity to learn more about his newest employee.

“So what are you majoring in again?”

Eren swallowed the bite of his food he was chewing and told him he was a business major.

“Sounds boring. Why'd you choose that?”

“I didn't really know what else to choose” Eren sighed.

“So why go to college at all until you're sure?” Levi asked, looking down at his food while he scooped up a bite with his fork. “Why spend a bunch of money to get a degree in something you might not enjoy?”

These were valid questions, and Eren wasn't sure what to say. “Well, isn't that what people are supposed to do? Graduate high school and go to college right after?”

Levi chuckled. “Yeah, I guess that's what they try to brainwash everyone into thinking.” He took a sip of his drink. Eren watched the way he placed his hand on the cup, essentially covering the top with his palm. He didn't really understand how he was even able to get the liquid into his mouth. He'd seen Levi holding his cup like this before and tried it himself when he was at home only to lose hold of the cup and spill his drink all over the couch.

“Why do you hold your cup like that?” He couldn't help but try and feed his curiosity. Levi looked down to the way he was holding it and shrugged.

“I don't know. It's just how I learned to hold it.”

“Did you go to college?” Eren asked suddenly. Levi merely acknowledged the question by shaking his head and was quick to put the attention back to the boy sitting next to him. He asked him what he enjoyed doing and what mattered to him. He made a mental note that Eren had a tendency to take the focus off of himself as he began to talk about Armin. He started going on about how proud he was of his friend and how he supported him in what he was pursuing. He mentioned Mikasa and how much he missed her. He'd even brought up Jean and Marco and how he admired their passion to do the things they were doing. But he didn't talk much about himself at all.

Despite that, Levi found himself lost in the boy's eyes. While he wasn't really learning anything new about Eren, he stared in awe as those emerald orbs lit up when he spoke about the people he loved and cared about. He watched Eren's mouth move while he talked and admired his perfect, white teeth. At least the kid took care of his hygiene, he thought. He always smelled good, a mixture of Old Spice and some brand of cologne that Levi couldn't quite put his finger on.

“Levi?” The young adult's voice brought Levi out of the daze he hadn't realized he'd fallen into. “We're both done eating, shouldn't we start before it gets too late?”

They both had the day off from work. Hanji returned from her trip so she was able to take over the bar some nights. When Eren first started Levi was there every single night, and he was surprised the man didn't get completely burnt out. But even though they had all the time in the world today, Eren had plans to hang out with Armin and the others tonight.

They cleaned up what was leftover from their meal and Levi grabbed the bag he brought with him. He got out a set of flair bottles and set them to the side.

“Can you juggle?” He asked.

“Um, well it's been a while since I've even tried.” Eren replied.

“So that's a no.” He reached into his bag and pulled out some small plastic balls. “Take these, and just show me what you're able to do.” Eren took hold of the three balls and did his best to try and juggle them in the air, only to fail miserably as they fell to the floor one by one very shortly after he started. Levi let out a deep sigh and picked the balls up.

“You have to get a rhythm going. Make sure you're throwing them at the same angle each time and make sure that you're throwing the ball up just before the one in the air reaches your hand. This will give you more time to get your throw ready.” He explained. “How good are your reflexes?”

Eren liked to think after years of video games and his years playing sports in school that his reflexes were good. Same went for his coordination, which he was sure Levi was going to ask about.

“I just haven't utilized anything since I graduated.” He said. “I'm out of practice, or whatever.”

Levi spent the next fifteen minutes or so going back and forth with Eren, showing him how an effective juggle should look and letting Eren try it out for himself. But Eren was showing very little improvement. He tried to be patient with him because this was all new to him, but he couldn't help but feel slightly agitated.

“Alright, kid. Come here.” Eren walked over to him with the spheres in his hands. Levi stopped him and shifted his body up against Eren's so that his back was against the boy's stomach and wrapped his palms around the top of his hands. Eren's heart started pumping ferociously and he was certain his neck had turned beet red.

“W-What are you doing?” He sputtered out, nerves forcing his voice to shake.

“I'm trying to help you get a feel for what you need to do. I'd do this the other way, but you're like the fucking jolly green giant and I wouldn't be able to see what I'm doing.” Levi answered, his tone not faltering for a second. Honestly, Eren wasn't that tall for a guy. He reached up to about 5'10'', barely more than a head taller than the man standing in front of him.

“You're just short...” Eren mumbled, trying to calm his nerves. Levi responded by jabbing him in the stomach with his elbow, which was rewarded by a loud grunt from Eren.

“You want to move your hands like this,” Levi began to move Eren's hands deliberately. “And when you peak you let go of the ball and keep your hand open for the next one.” Eren was trying to pay attention to his words but couldn't help but be distracted by the feeling of Levi's impossibly soft hands rubbing slightly against his own and the feeling of his body lightly pressed against him.

“Start throwing the balls up while I guide the motion. Can you do that?” Levi asked as he stopped moving their hands. The two of them worked together for a moment as Levi tried to give Eren a feel for the pattern he should use. Once Levi was satisfied with their hopeful progress he let the spheres drop to the floor and let go of Eren's hands. Unsatisfied with the loss of contact, Eren grabbed his hands and held them in his own.

“What are you doing?” Levi asked flatly.

“You're hands are really soft.” Eren answered, rubbing his thumbs inside Levi's palms. Levi turned his head to look at the younger man and they met each other's gaze for a moment. He looked at Eren's large, ocean-colored eyes and they were filled with a longing that Levi knew the boy wasn't prepared to act on. But still, he thought, what if he just tilted his head up a bit?

Eren snapped out of it quickly enough and let go of Levi's hands, backing up away from him. “S-Sorry. I shouldn't have done that.” He looked away nervously before reaching down to pick up the balls. His heart was racing and his cheeks were burning up. _What am I doing?_ He thought. _Was Levi trying to... kiss me?_

“I think we'll call it a wrap for today.” Levi sighed out. He reached down to pick up his bag and hoisted it over his shoulder. Eren went to put the juggling balls back in the bag for him. “No. Keep those. Practice.”

Eren set them down on the TV stand. “Okay.”

“We'll do more on Monday. I expect to see you at work tomorrow night.” Levi said as he wrapped his hand around the door handle. He stopped for a moment before turning the knob and looked up to Eren, who was still an obvious nervous wreck. _He's not going to, even if you ask._

“I'll see you on Monday.” Eren smiled sheepishly and Levi finally opened the door. He acknowledged Eren with a wave and made his way out

 

* * *

 

 

“Marco! What the hell? You're a piece of shit!” 

“Calm down, Jean! You don't have to be so hostile.”

“No, I'm mad at you! I finally got ahead and look what you did!”

“Jean-”

“Calm down, both of you. It's just a game.”

It'd been a fun night over at Jean and Marco's house. As usual, Marco made a bunch of delicious snacks and Eren and Armin were always happy to dig in. They'd played a couple of board games already, considered a trivia game but decided that they were too drunk for that already, and opted to play video games instead. If there's one thing Eren learned tonight, it was that it's all fun and games until someone decides to play Mario Kart.

Eren laughed at the two boyfriends bantering at each other over Marco shooting a blue shell while Jean was in first place. That man took the game way too seriously. He decided not to play this game because he was just as hot headed as Jean was and after the event with Levi earlier that day, he had a lot on his mind.

Tonight the group was joined by two more bodies, a couple of girls named Christa and Ymir. They were frequent customers at the bar and Eren had become fairly familiar with them. Christa was currently playing this round and decided to be the voice of reason between the bickering couple. Connie was also playing this round but he was so lost in concentration he couldn't be bothered by the others' reactions.

Eren couldn't stop thinking about Levi, and it kept his stomach in a knot the entire night. He stared through the kitchen at the back sliding door that led out to the backyard, contemplated for a moment and finally asked Armin to go outside with him.

They stood on the back porch, arms leaning over the railing.

“What is it? You seem like something's on your mind.” Armin asked. “Did something happen with Levi earlier?” He wore a worried expression, as was expected of Eren's best friend. Eren struggled to make eye contact, but finally looked up to Armin with an almost pleading look in his eyes.

“I think I like him, Armin.” This wasn't helping. His stomach felt even worse and he thought he might even throw up. He knew he could confide in Armin and that has always comforted him, but he'd never been attracted to a guy before in his life and he hated this feeling of not knowing why he suddenly was now. He broke eye contact after sputtering out his confession and stared at the carefully laid out garden path in the backyard. Marco was such a housewife.

Armin giggled at Eren's confession, which didn't help to calm Eren's nerves at all. He knew he wasn't being judged badly by Armin – he never would be – but he didn't think his friend would laugh at him.

“I'm glad you're finally admitting to it.” His friend replied to him, giving a sincere smile. Eren looked back over to him, feeling inquisitive. “You stare at him a lot. And it's not just staring, you straight up ogle the man.”

Eren turned a shade of red that could rival the ugliest Christmas sweater. “I do not!” He protested.

Armin looked out at the yard. “You haven't been able to keep your eyes off of him since the first time you saw him.” He glanced back over to Eren, his big blue eyes glimmering in the moonlight. “He looks at you too, you know.”

Eren choked. “What!?” _Come to think of it... He did lean in like he wanted to kiss me earlier._ “No, I think it's all in your head.” _There's no way that's what he was doing._

“That first night we went to that bar when Levi brought you to me to get you out of there you called him 'the sexy bartender'.” Armin laughed as he looked back over to his mortified friend.

“Armin! Why didn't you say anything to me!?” Eren couldn't help but raise his voice. He was absolutely, utterly embarrassed now. Armin placed a hand on top of Eren's.

“Eren. Don't worry about it.” He looked into his friends eyes, shimmering blue meeting with a deep sea green. “It's like you said, there's nothing wrong with liking someone. Don't worry yourself over it and don't sit here and beat yourself up questioning your sexuality or anything. Just let it be.”

Stubborn and bullheaded as always, Eren murmured, “I never said I was questioning my sexuality.” He followed up his comment by pouting his lip. Armin smiled sympathetically toward his friend and moved his hand to wrap around Eren's shoulders. Eren moved his head back slightly to avoid the strong smell of alcohol emanating from Armin's mouth.

“You get cute when you're defensive.” He chuckled and leaned his head into Eren's neck. He knew the gesture was nothing more than that of a close friend (albeit a drunk one), and leaned his head on top of Armin's in return and they stood like that for a moment before a voice finally interrupted the two.

“Looks like we've got a couple of gay babies out here.” Armin pulled away from Eren and looked back to find Ymir standing behind them, arms crossed and a smirk on her face. “Why don't you let me talk to him, Armin?”

_Has she been listening to us this whole time?_ Eren thought. Armin obliged Ymir's request and headed back inside to join the others. She walked over to Eren and hoisted herself up to sit on the railing next to him.

“So how bad is it?” She asked.

“How bad is what?” Eren asked, feigning ignorance.

“Are you just curious? Do you want to know what it's like to kiss him?” Ymir asked. Eren looked up at her, squinting his eyes slightly, trying to understand what she was getting at. “Or perhaps there's more to it? Maybe you want to know what it'd be like to fuck him. Is that something you want to get out of your system?” she stopped to chuckle before finishing. “Or do you actually like him? Do you want to date him?”

“I don't think any of this is your business.” Eren said as he began to walk away.

“I can help you, if you want.”

Eren stopped, turned to face her once more and asked, “And how would you do that?” He couldn't deny he was now intrigued with what she had to say.

“Well it wouldn't be hard.” She smiled. “I pride myself on my flawless gaydar but I'm pretty good at telling when a person likes someone else and I'll tell you right now, shorty's got it bad.” She lifted up her hand and glanced over her fingernails.

“How do you figure?”

“Well first off, you're the only person he's hired since the bar opened besides those who already work there. That's the first hint. He's very picky about his company.” She dropped her hand from her face and drew her attention back to Eren. “When he thinks no one is looking, he stares at you. He'll bite the inside of his lip if he sees you bend over to clean up one of your blunders. I've heard him breathe in heavily looking at you once or twice. But he's never going to admit to it. He's not exactly an open book.”

Eren was beet red by the time she finished her reasoning. He figured there was no way she wasn't just making this all up. But he wanted to believe it, and he knew that she talked to Levi a lot when she came to the bar, so she probably knew him halfway decent. He was certain he wanted Levi in some way, although he still couldn't put his finger on it just right. And although he was sure he would end up regretting it, he couldn't deny that he wanted to at least feed his curiosity. He wondered what the man's lips would feel like, what he looked like without a shirt on, how his voice sounded when...

“Okay. I'm listening.”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For once I actually feel kind of pleased with my writing here (maybe it's improving slightly? idk). \\(^_^)/
> 
> Anyway. Let the gay start to unravel! What does Ymir have planned? (why is she even making it her business? hmmmm)


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mikasa comes to visit Eren. Ymir's a little shit. Eren gets too drunk for his own good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know what I'm doing.
> 
> Regrettably, I'm not in a point of the story where I could participate in Christmas fluff this year! Boo!! D:

On Monday Levi let Eren get a feel for the flair bottles, tossing them back and forth between the two of them. He advised Eren to loosen up his wrist movements and when a visual wasn't enough, he grabbed the boy's forearm and wiggled it around to give him an idea of how it should feel to relax his wrists. They'd locked eyes for a brief moment and the urge to kiss his boss was hard to resist.

Tuesday and Wednesday were typical work days for the both of them and nothing too eventful happened in the bar. Eren would glance in Levi's direction when he wasn't looking, occasionally treating himself to the sight of the older man's behind, and Levi did the same when Eren wasn't paying attention. 

On Thursday Levi helped Eren spruce up his apartment some more before giving him another lesson in tossing and juggling. Eren teased Levi by holding up a bottle to a height that he couldn't reach which resulted in a swift kick to the shin and on that day Eren learned that it wasn't a good idea to taunt the older man.

The weekend passed by as they normally did. Eren sat on the sidelines while Levi showcased his skill and the bar was busy, full of people and full of energy. Eren spent the usual Saturday night with his friends and had himself a lighthearted conversation with Marco that ranged from childhood memories to their idea of the meaning of life to which Eren could only say, “It's simple. Life has no meaning without McDonald's.” And they laughed at the dumb statement, their heads light and fuzzy from the beer they'd been drinking that night.

_This_ week, however, didn't start out as smoothly and tonight Eren found himself in a slump at the bar on a boring Monday night. There weren't very many customers other than the regulars and people who didn't have normal nine to five jobs. In fact, the only people hanging out in the downstairs bar where he worked were Ymir and Christa, who were sitting on one of the benches across the room, and a few men sitting at the bar counter watching the baseball game.

Levi had been working earlier that night to cover for Gunther, who had to take a few days off on short notice to attend his grandfather's funeral, but he'd left around 9:00. This was actually to Eren's benefit. Their practice earlier that day had ended up being fairly unproductive as Eren tried to avoid any physical contact with him and was overall just a nervous wreck. Levi became very irritated with him and ended up leaving stating, “If you're not going to take this seriously, then I'm not going to teach you anything.” He'd continued with his irritable behavior while he was at the bar as well and it was like a weight was lifted off of Eren's shoulders once he called it a night.

Hanji was working downstairs with Eren while Auruo managed the few customers in the upstairs bar. She was wiping down the counter where a customer had just left for the night and she looked over to Eren who was lost in his own thoughts, staring at the tv screen.

“So when did you say your sister was coming to visit?” She asked, trying to get Eren's mind off of whatever it was he was thinking about.

“Huh?” Eren turned to look at her. “Oh. She's going to be driving in tomorrow, which is why I requested the next couple of days off.” He answered before turning his attention back to the screen.

“How long is she going to be staying here?”

“Hm?” Eren decided then that it would be best to keep his attention focused on Hanji, so he turned his body around to lean on the counter as he faced her. “She's planning on staying until Sunday. It's a long trip, so she's got to make it worth while, you know.” The trip from Shinganshina to Trost was a good six-hour drive, which is why he didn't get to see Mikasa or his parents as often as he wanted to. And after being in college for a couple of years Eren decided he wasn't obligated to stay home during the summer anymore. _I am an adult now, afterall,_ he figured.

“So how are you liking learning flair so far?” Hanji asked, an exceptional curiosity in her tone.

“Oh, well... I don't know if Levi's going to keep teaching me now. I have a lot on my mind so I was kind of lousy when he was at my apartment earlier today.”

“Which was why he was irritated.”

“Yeah, I know that.” _You don't have to remind me._

“He'll keep trying to teach you. I don't know why, but he seems to have an interest in you. Says you have some kind of vibe about you.” Hanji smiled. “So, if you don't mind me asking, what's on your mind?”

“Oh, um... Just some stuff.” He wasn't about to confess to her his crush on his own boss. He wasn't sure _how_ to approach the situation. He didn't entirely trust Ymir's words. She always seemed kind of shady to him, or at the very least just selfish, only caring about herself and Christa. So he didn't know if she was just trying to get a kick out of his situation or if she genuinely wanted to help him feed his curiosity. She'd come up with some really bizarre plan of action to get Levi to somehow admit that he likes Eren or to make a move on Eren, but after listening to the plan Eren decided he wasn't really game.

_You should just kiss him. At a flair practice. Or maybe you could get him alone in the storage room? No... that would piss him off. Trying to kiss him at all would probably piss him off. Fuck! Why can't I stop thinking about this?_ His thoughts were plaguing him like an itch he couldn't quite scratch. He'd hoped that having his sister come over to visit would alleviate him from thinking about his dilemma.

And it helped. Tuesday afternoon came quickly enough. Eren was expecting Mikasa to show up around two in the afternoon and he was eagerly anticipating her arrival. He'd bought some fresh beef and whipped up some cheeseburgers, hoping she'd get there on time so they'd be fresh and hot for her. He bought some salad mix specifically for her since she was such a health nut and even spent a few extra dollars to get her a type of organic juice that she always went on about.

Finally he heard a knock on his door and his heart skipped a beat. He looked at the clock and noted that she was a few minutes late but it was better than nothing.

“Mikasa!” He said brightly as he opened the door. She was standing there with a suitcase in her hand, dropping it immediately to embrace her brother in a long, tight hug.

“Eren, I've missed you so much.” She smiled into his neck, breathing in his scent and appreciating his presence.

“I've missed you, too.” Eren replied, rubbing his cheek against Mikasa's soft hair. After embracing for what felt like hours they finally pulled away. He looked his sister up and down and commented, “You cut your hair!”

She grabbed at her black locks and giggled. “Yeah, I've had it long for such a long time and I was getting bored with it, so I thought I'd change things up.” She said. She picked her suitcase back up and made her way inside the apartment where she stood with an astounded look on her face. “It's so clean in here!”

“Yeah, I've got to keep it clean or Levi won't teach me flair.” Eren said as he shut the door and headed into the kitchen. “You hungry? I made burgers!”

“Yeah, I'd love one!” Mikasa answered as she made herself home on Eren's couch.

Eren prepped her a cheeseburger and the salad. He brought it to her with a bottle of raspberry vinigarette on the side and the container of juice. She thanked him and the two of them ate together on Eren's couch, catching up on each others' lives and engaging in small talk.

“So are you talking to anyone at all? It's been a while since you've had a boyfriend.” Eren asked. She hadn't mentioned anything related to the topic but then, they also didn't talk as much as they used to.

“Oh! Yeah!” Mikasa's eyes were beaming. “I met a guy named Thomas a few months ago at the gym. I actually trained him for a couple of weeks. Real sweet guy. We've been talking for a while but he finally asked me out a couple months ago and we've been going steady since.” Eren was glad to see that she was happy. She was picky about her company so he assumed that this guy was good news. “What about you? Any new girlfriends?”

“Oh.” Eren replied nervously. “No. There aren't really any girls I'm interested in right now.” _No. Instead I'm interested in some guy I work for who has a short temper and is a neurotic clean-freak._

“That's too bad. It's been a couple years now hasn't it?”

“I suppose. It's not a big deal.” Eren shrugged. He was eager to change the topic. Luckily for him there was a knock on the door. He got up quickly and answered to find Armin in the doorway. Of course, he'd been expecting to see him. Armin was just as anxious to see Mikasa again as Eren was. The three of them were inseparable while they were growing up, after all. The blond helped himself to his own cheeseburger and joined in the conversation.

“You should come to Jean and Marco's with us on Friday!” Armin offered. He was always so enthused to spend time with them. Eren assumed it was mostly because of his crush on Jean but he and Marco had also started to develop a pretty close friendship just as Eren had. There was just nothing you could hate about Marco. Mikasa agreed to, of course. She wasn't about to spend a night alone at Eren's apartment and she had come to visit and be a part of their lives for a few days anyway.

Over the course of the next few days Eren and Armin took Mikasa around town to spend time at various parks and treat her to some local mom-and-pop restaurants. They played video games together and reminisced on old times. Mikasa slept next to Eren on his bed while she was staying over and they would stay up late talking.

On Thursday night Eren had to work. Mikasa stayed behind and spent time with Armin, but when Eren came home he didn't seem to be in the same chipper mood he'd been in all week.

“You seem a little down tonight. Something happen at work?” She asked, rolling onto her side to face him.

Eren looked up to the ceiling and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Nothing. My boss is just... it's just... I'm... It's nothing.” His voice was strained and he was clearly stressed. But he wasn't about to tell Mikasa about this annoying crush he had on his boss. He trusted her but he wasn't really to spread the news yet, so to say. At least not until he was sure about what was going on in Levi's mind.

“You know you can talk to me about anything, right?” Mikasa offered.

“I know.” 

* * *

 

“Jaeger,” Levi's voice was calmer tonight than it had been all week. “Go help out Ymir and Christa.”

“Yes, sir.” Eren complied. He'd been standing at the counter talking with Mikasa who decided to come with him to work tonight. Ymir and Christa were sitting at the bar, which was odd for them as they usually occupied a corner bench on the opposite side of the room. Some nights showing more displays of affection than others, but always planted in the same spot away from others. Ymir was definitely protective of Christa and practically clawed at any men who dared to go near her.

“Hey, Eren!” Christa greeted, her smile as big and beautiful as it always was. She was undeniably gorgeous, and she had a heavenly aura. Her presence in and of itself was soothing and Eren could admit he envied Ymir for being able to bask in that kind of presence almost constantly. What he didn't understand was how someone like Christa ended up with someone like Ymir. But you know what they say, opposites attract.

“What do you guys want tonight?” Eren asked, smiling back at Christa and seemingly ignoring Ymir.

“She's going to take a sex-on-the-beach,” Ymir started. “I'll have a screwdriver.” She gave Eren a mischievous grin. “Two shots of Bacardi for our bartender as well.”

Eren dropped his smile immediately. “Ymir, not tonight. My sister's here.” He said bluntly.

“So?” Ymir snickered as she slid her cash over to Eren.

“I really don't want to do this with my sister here.” Eren insisted. Ymir looked down the counter to Levi.

“Hey, Levi. Your bartender won't accept a shot!” she shouted.

“Are you fucking-”

“Eren. Take the drink.” Levi insisted in his usual flat tone, not even bothering to turn his attention toward him.

“But it's just Ymir! I have-”

“You want to please your boss don't you, Eren?” Ymir teased and he knew this question was heavily coated in innuendo. “You'll get a nice tip later.” She gave him a wink. Eren's face turned a deep red and he gave in to Ymir's request. He grabbed the ingredients he needed to put together the girls' mixed drinks and poured some Bacardi into a double shot glass. He handed them each their drink and Ymir tipped her glass to Eren, who did the same back with his shot and they both took a drink.

“No more tonight, Ymir. I'm serious.” Eren's tone was stern.

“We'll see.”

He walked back over to Mikasa and apologized.

“You're boss lets you drink on the job?” she questioned, clearly unhappy about what she'd just witnessed and mentally stabbing Ymir with her eyes.

“He says its rude not to accept the shot.” Eren explained.

“But what if you get too drunk?”

“He sends you home, I guess? No one's ever gotten that drunk though, at least as far as I'm aware.”

Mikasa looked at Levi with an intensity and flatly said, “I don't think I like him.”

Eren sighed. “He gave me a job when he didn't even need to. He's cool. It's fine.”

Mikasa turned back to Eren with the same glare. “Well I hope you didn't accept the job just so you could get drunk for free.”

She always got mad at Eren for drinking, but it wasn't a big surprise. He'd had gone to a party once in high school, well before he'd built any kind of alcohol tolerance, and his peers managed to get him so drunk he ended up in the hospital due to alcohol poisoning. His tolerance has improved immensely since that incident but Mikasa wanted to hear nothing about him drinking, and when she knew he was she was quick to voice her protest.

Eren watched Levi as he walked away from the bar, assuming he was going to take a smoke break, and replied back to Mikasa, “I took the job because I needed a job. Nothing more, nothing less.” Which was the plain and simple truth. Granted, the fact that Levi was the one who offered the job was a deciding factor, but he really did need somewhere to work.

He checked the clock to see that it was nine-thirty. Levi would be gone for the next half hour as he always was before he performed his flair routine around ten o'clock. Eren silently wondered what song Levi would be performing to tonight. The first night he'd seen him Levi did his routine to “Hot Hot Hot” by Buster Poindexter – A one-hit wonder from the 80's. Eren had expected more cheesy songs like that but has been surprised at the wide variety of genres Levi performed to. The majority of his performances were to popular hip hop songs, but he had a couple routines done to alternative songs and his performance the previous Saturday was to some Skrillex song.

Shortly before Levi was due to start his routine, Armin finally came in to join them, expressing curiosity about what song they'd be treated to tonight.

“You seriously don't know?” He asked Eren, surprised that Levi didn't share this kind of information with his staff.

“If you want to know so bad go ask Jean. He's the only one who knows anything since he spins the song.” Eren shrugged.

“Nah, I don't want to bother him right now!” Armin insisted. He turned to Mikasa. “I have a few things I want to do before we go to his house later. You should come with me Mikasa! Maybe we can grab a bite to eat!”

Marco didn't play housewife on Friday nights and usually ended up at the bar at some point, so if you wanted to eat, you had to take care of it yourself. Eren was hopeful that Mikasa would take Armin up on his offer because he knew that Ymir wasn't going to back off tonight.

His thoughts were interrupted as Levi made his usual walk-in appearance. Eren called Fridays “Cravat Day” because for some odd reason, Levi always chose to wear one. But only on Fridays. Saturdays he went with a bow tie – which Eren found way more sexy than the cravat – and the rest of the week was always plain old casual wear.

Tonight's performance was to a Macklemore mash-up. Specifically “Can't Hold Us” and “Thrift Shop.” The bar went nuts. Eren stood in the corner and admired his boss showing off his talent. Sometimes he swore Levi hid a third arm somewhere, but that would be impossible. He knew he'd never be able to measure up to him, but when he saw these performances he was much more determined to learn flair himself.

Once the performance was over Eren walked back behind the bar to help hand out the shots. He reluctantly approached Ymir and Christa.

“Take Christa's shot. She doesn't do shots.” Ymir said.

“Ymir, I'm not doing this tonight.” Eren murmured.

“Yes you are, now drink.” She laughed as she shoved the drink to him. He let out an exasperated sigh and chugged down the shot quickly before moving back down the line.

Mikasa chose to leave with Armin, letting Eren know she won't be happy if he shows up drunk later, and not soon after they took off Marco came in and occupied the seat Mikasa had been at a while earlier.

“Hey! You guys coming over tonight!” He greeted Eren with his usual warm smile.

“Yeah, of course! My sister's visiting and I really want you guys to meet her.” Eren replied with a smile of his own.

“That's good. We've got some news we wanted to share.”

“Really? What kind of news?” Eren was curious. Marco beckoned a finger and Eren leaned in.

He lowered his voice to a whisper. “Keep it on the down-low, but Jean asked me to marry him last night.”

“Wow!! That's really awesome!” Eren exclaimed.

“Shh!” Marco shushed with a small giggle. Eren held out his index finger for a moment before walking off. He leaned in to whisper something in Levi's ear, to which Levi nodded, and he poured some liquor into two shot glasses. Ymir be damned, Eren was going to share a celebratory drink with his friend. And so he did. The two clinked their glasses together and took their shots. But then, much to Eren's dismay, Ymir and Christa walked over and sat beside Marco, Ymir being the one sitting closer.

“Looks like we're celebrating. I'll buy you guys another shot.” She offered.

“Ymir-”

“Sure!” Marco accepted. He turned to Eren who wore an irritable expression and laughed. “Eren don't look so upset. It's free alcohol.”

Once again, Eren prepared a set of shots and they drank.

“How are you feeling, Eren?” Ymir said with a big smirk across her lips.

“Irritated with you.” He mumbled. “I'm having a hard time focusing. I think that's enough. Quit giving me more drinks.”

About thirty minutes and several shots later, which Ymir had asked other customers to buy so she wouldn't get in trouble, Eren gave one last demand for Ymir to stop. His words were beginning to slur and his movements had become far less deliberate. Ymir had apparently decided it was enough because she agreed to stop.

But suddenly she stood up on the bars of her barstool and turned to the rest of the bar, which was crowded as it always was on a Friday night.

“Hey guys! I want a show of hands! Who thinks it'd be totally hot if Eren and Levi laid a thirty-second smooch on each other!?” Eren dipped down under the bar stand to hide his embarrassment. He looked over to Levi who stood there with the usual indifferent look on his face.

“Levi! Do something!” He hissed as he heard customers roaring on the other side of the counter. Levi looked over to him and gave him a small, amused smirk. Eren didn't understand why he was giving him that look. Surely he wasn't about to kiss Eren in front of all the bar customers. That would be unprofessional, right? _Right!?_

Levi walked over to him. “Stand up, you look childish crouching down and hiding like that.” He said. Eren did as he was told and stood up next to the shorter man, staggering a bit in the process.

“Twenty bucks for each of you if you make out for thirty seconds.” Ymir insisted.

“I don't-”

“Eren,” Levi said as he moved in on his employee, looking up at the younger man with an almost devilish look in his eyes. “It's an easy twenty bucks.”

“What, you want to do this?” Eren asked. The room was spinning around him and the alcohol was catching up fast. It didn't help that Levi was moving in closer to him and normally this would make him super nervous but he was just too drunk to care at this point.

Levi simply repeated his previous statement. “It's twenty bucks.” The customers in the bar were shouting “do it” repeatedly in the background. Eren looked over to Marco like he wanted him to intervene but Marco simply smiled and shrugged back at him, mouthing the same thing Levi had been saying.

Before Eren could think his next thought, he felt Levi slide his fingers around his hips and pull him in by his belt loops. The shorter man looked up at him with heavy-lidded eyes and his mouth partly open.

“Levi-” He started, but was cut off my the shorter man pressing his lips against his own which was rewarded with fanatic squeals from the girls in the bar. His lips were soft. Softer than Eren imagined they'd be and he could still taste the remnants of Levi's last cigarette lingering on them. It should have been disgusting but, perhaps because it was Levi, or maybe just because he was drunk, it was absolutely intoxicating.

Eren halfheartedly tried to push away for a brief moment before feeling Levi wrap his hand around the nape of his neck to pull him in for a deeper kiss. The older man parted his lips with his tongue and Eren couldn't find it in himself to resist. He slid his fingers through Levi's hair, grabbing it almost aggressively and used his other hand to wrap around Levi's waist, trying to pull him in closer. He allowed Levi's tongue to enter his mouth and the two muscles began to dance around each other. Eren whimpered into the older man's mouth when he felt wandering hands make their way to his ass where they firmly grasped. He was about to mimic the action when-

“Time's up lover boys!” Ymir shouted playfully, and Levi pulled away from Eren. They stared at each other for a brief moment, trying to catch their breath while the girls in the bar cheered in the background. If Eren wasn't drunk before, he was definitely drunk now off of Levi's kiss and he was almost tempted to move back in for another. “Here you go!” Ymir smiled as she held out two twenty dollar bills. They both took the money and pocketed it and as if nothing had even happened Levi turned and walked to the other side of the bar where a customer was flagging him over.

Eren turned to Marco. “You could have stopped that.” His words came out sloppily.

“But don't you like him?” Marco chuckled quietly.

“Fuck yeah I do but that's not the point.” He leaned down on the counter, not even bothering to realize that Marco knew something that Eren had never told him. “Fuuuuuck, I've had too much to drink. I don't know if I can keep working like this.”

“Can't you go take a break?” Marco suggested. Eren groaned as he turned his head in Levi's direction.

“Levi, I need a break!” He shouted. Levi waved his hand dismissively and Eren walked off without another word. He made his way into the storage room where he leaned his body against the red pool table. He put his hand to his forehead and rubbed it gently.

_I had better ideas for a first kiss._ He thought to himself. He tried to focus on a broken dart board that sat on the floor across the room but was finding it hard to do so. _I'm so drunk. I just want to go._

A few minutes passed and Eren heard the storage room door open followed by footsteps heading in his direction.

“I'm guessing your too drunk to complete your shift.” Eren looked up to see Levi standing by the pool table with his arms crossed in front of his chest.

Suddenly something came over him – probably the alcohol – and he moved toward Levi and pulled his face in to press their lips together all in one surprisingly smooth motion. Levi didn't protest and parted his mouth to welcome deep, open kisses while he grabbed hold of Eren's shirt, pulling him toward him and backing up slowly until his back was against the wall. Eren placed his forearms against the wall on either side of Levi's head and continued to kiss him sloppily, sliding his tongue against the older man's and letting out a small moan.

Despite knowing where he wanted this to go, there were a few reasons why Levi knew that they couldn't do this right now and when Eren began to trail a hand down he slapped it away before lightly pushing Eren off of him. He looked at Eren who'd become a panting mess, his eyes blown from the alcohol and saturated in lust.

“Why'd you-”

“Eren, I need to go back out to the bar and take care of the customers.” Levi interrupted, trying to catch his own breath. “You need to leave. You're too drunk to work.” Eren didn't want to accept this and leaned back in for another kiss. Levi intercepted by cupping his palm over Eren's mouth and added, “Please. Now's not the time.”

Eren rolled his eyes and sighed, “Fine,” and he began to walk toward the door. He stopped and pointed a finger to Levi. “Don't take this as... She made me take all those shots so you'd... whatever.” He fumbled through the door and back out to the bar where he was met with Marco. “Can you believe this guy? He makes out with me and then tells me to go home. Tch.”

“I think it's a good idea to get you out of here too.” Marco chuckled as he gave Levi, who'd just come through the doorway, a knowing look. He grabbed Eren's hand to help guide him out of the bar, but not without taking a small detour by Jean's DJ stand to let him know they'd be leaving and would meet him back at their home.

“Come on, Jaeger, I thought you could handle a few drinks!” Jean laughed.

“Ymir wouldn't stop making him slam down shots.” Marco informed.

“Jean you can't even handle a few beers!” Eren teased. “I'll fucking... I'll out drink you any time. We should drink more tonight!”

“I'm going to get him out of here,” Marco said. “I'll meet you back at the house, okay?”

“Alright.” Jean replied, and when Marco began to walk away with Eren he called out, “Hey! Come here for a sec.” Marco smiled and walked behind the DJ stand to get closer to his lover. Jean put a palm to the side of his face and gave him a chaste kiss on the lips. He rubbed a thumb over a patch of freckles on Marco's cheek and told him, “Please drive safe. I love you.”

Marco replied with “I love you, too” before giving Jean another kiss and walking away. He grabbed Eren, who had started talking to one of the girls in the bar, and the headed up the stairs out to the back parking lot.

Eren had become quite the handful as he started spewing profanities and cursing Levi for not allowing him to give in to his primal desires. Marco acknowledged Eren's drunk comments with mindless responses like “I know” and “okay” as he urged Eren to get into his car. Eventually he managed to get him to sit in there and Marco drove out of the parking lot.

“Marco, what's it like to fuck a guy?” Eren asked. He was always way more blunt and definitely more vulgar when he was intoxicated and Marco could only reply with a nervous chuckle before Eren continued. “I know there's no way Jean's the topper. He makes the bitchiest sounds when you guys are going at it.”

“You've heard us?” Marco was mortified and he turned his attention to Eren.

Eren laughed. “Oh yeah!” He poked a finger to Marco's cheek. “You guys get reaaaallly loud. Jean's a screamer. It'd be hot if he wasn't such a jackass.” He giggled, paused for a moment and turned his attention out the window. “The way he makes it sound though, you must feel _really fucking good_.”

“Eren, stop!” Marco pleaded as heat flushed into his cheeks. He was beyond embarrassed at this point.

“I'd looove to make Levi scream like that...” Eren stated while he grabbed hold of his stomach. Marco looked over and noticed Eren looked a bit paler than normal.

“Hey, you feeling okay Eren?” He asked, no longer worried about the conversation and more concerned about the health of his friend.

“I'mgonnathrowup” Eren slurred as he started to hurl his body forward.

“Eren, no!” Marco yelled as he instinctively threw his arm in Eren's direction as if it would magically prevent him from vomiting all over his car.

The next thing Eren knew, the car had shifted it's velocity dramatically and quickly, a loud noise roaring in his ears like something was breaking, shattering. He felt his head hit the passenger side window hard before being hit in the face by the large, plastic airbag.

“Marco, you okay!?” He called out after the car had finally stopped moving. His voice was muffled by the airbag however, and he heard no response. Pushing the bag out of his way and effectively deflating it he looked over to his friend and shouted his name once more, panic rising in his chest at the bloody, limp mess that was sitting in the seat next to him. There airbag on the driver's side never engaged, and it appeared as though they had just endured a side-impact from another car. No longer aware of his own self or anything he had been feeling just moments before, Eren reached his arms out and shook his friend by the shoulder.

“MARCO!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SORRY!!


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone's sad. Levi decides to comfort Eren in his own way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know you guys are mad at me for ending the last chapter the way I did.
> 
> But hang tight. 
> 
> I promise some good comes by the end of this chapter. ^_^

“ _So what got you into painting anyway?”_

“ _Oh, my mother is a painter. I loved everything she made when I was a kid. I picked up on it as a hobby and it became very important to me because it made her so happy.”_

_Eren smiled at his friend and replied, “Well you're really, really good at it. I wish I was as good at anything as you are at painting. Jean's lucky he gets to look at these beautiful works of art every day.”_

_Marco blushed. “I'm not_ that _good.” He turned and faced Eren. “I'm sure you're good at something too.”_

_Eren shrugged. “Not really. I don't even know what I enjoy that I could make a career out of. Armin's a genius and he wants to help people, so the medical field is perfect for him. My sister's been a health nut since middle school, so that was an obvious direction for her to go. You're a brilliant painter. Jean's... Well he loves what he does.”_

_Marco laughed and flicked Eren lightly on the nose. “Just admit he's a good DJ. He picks really good songs and he keeps the bar lively.”_

“ _What's he planning on doing with a degree in technical music anyway?”_

“ _Probably work for a big record label if possible. You know, mixing tracks for artists and such. He jokes around and says that I should make the art for albums that he works on but we both know that's not how things work.” Marco replied with a chuckle._

_Eren laughed with his friend and changed his attention to the back porch of the house. He observed Jean and Armin standing shoulder to shoulder and couldn't help but feel a deep pit in his stomach._

“ _Doesn't that bother you?” He pointed out. Marco turned in the same direction Eren was facing to see._

“ _Nah. They never actually do anything and honestly I'm glad to see Jean making such a close friend. Armin's a good guy.” He looked back over to Eren and smiled softly. “To be honest, if anything were to happen to me, or if we were to break off our relationship for whatever reason, I think I'd rather him end up with Armin over anyone else. Their chemistry is good, but besides that, Armin really cares about him and I think he'd do a good job of taking care of him. Jean can really be a handful. He's so hot-headed sometimes.”_

_Eren admired Marco's ability to see beyond himself. There wasn't a selfish bone in his body. But as much as he wanted to see Armin happy, he never wanted to see Marco be hurt._

“ _Don't be silly,” Eren said, lightly punching Marco's arm. “Nothing's going to happen to you guys. And nothing is going to happen to you.”_

“ _Yeah, you're probably right.”_

* * *

 

Eren slowly opened his eyes, trying to take in the bright light, trying to remember where he was and trying to recognize the other voices in the room. His head was throbbing, and he was certain it wasn't from a hangover because it didn't give him that sickly feeling he always felt after a night of drinking too much. It felt like he'd been slammed against something. _But what?_  

“Do you think he's going to wake up soon?”

“Hopefully because I can't wait to smack him across the face for being such an idiot.”

“I don't really think that he needs that right now...”

Eren was facing away from the voices but recognized it was Armin and Mikasa. He wanted to stay in his thoughts for a few moments longer, however, so he didn't turn to face them. He tried to recall the events of the night before. He remembered Ymir pushing him to keep drinking even though he had been telling her not to. He remembered Armin taking Mikasa and going somewhere with her, and he remembered talking with Marco. He kept trying to figure out what else happened when he realized that Ymir paid him money to kiss Levi.

 _That's right... She got Levi to kiss me._ His stomach fluttered at the thought. _But... did she really have to go to such lengths?_

And then suddenly it hit him. There was a loud crash. There was screaming. But who's screaming?

“ _Marco! Marco!! Wake up!! MARCO!!”_

Why was he screaming Marco's name??

“ _Please! My friend is hurt, you need to get here! ...Where am I?? Fuck I don't know um...”_

He'd made a phone call.

“ _Jean!! Jean you need to leave the bar. Marco's hurt! I can't get him to wake up! Oh God I don't know what to do, Jean! Please... Hurry up!!”_

He felt the panic rising in his chest and his body quickly jolted upright.

“Where's Marco!?”

“Eren!” Armin shot up out of his chair and walked briskly over to his friend. “You're awake. How are you feeling?”

“Where is Marco? Is he okay?” Eren grabbed hold of Armin's forearms and held on tightly. “Please tell me he's alright.”

Armin looked down, unable to make eye contact with Eren.

“Armin, please! Don't tell me...”

“Eren... Marco is...”

Suddenly Eren felt sick and not just in his stomach. His head started spinning and his body started shaking. He gripped even tighter at Armin's arms and felt the tears begin to form in his eyes.

“No. No, he can't be. He's not.”

“Eren,” Mikasa had gotten up and crouched beside Eren, taking hold of his hand and rubbing it tenderly. “I'll yell at you later for drinking, but right now you need to understand. Your friend is gone. The paramedics said he died on impact. I'm sorry.”

Eren pulled his hand away from her and bent his legs, wrapped his arms around them, buried his head and started sobbing. He's not sure if he's ever cried so hard in his life but there was no way he could hold back with the overwhelming flow of emotions running through him. Armin sat down next to him and wrapped his arms around him, rubbing his back and nudging his head against Eren's. He knew there would be no words he could say to help Eren feel better about the situation but he at least wanted his best friend to know that he was there for him.

They heard the door open and Eren looked up to see Jean standing there. He quickly turned his head in the opposite direction. There was no way he could look Jean in the eyes right now.

“Guys, can I speak with Eren alone?” Jean requested.

“Of course.” Armin answered as he let go of his friend and stood up. “We'll wait outside the room.”

Jean sat down beside Eren, who still refused to look in his direction, and waited until he heard the door close behind him.

“Eren,” Jean started. But the only acknowledgment Eren gave was pulling his legs in closer to his chest and letting out a quiet sob. “Eren, please, look at me.”

“I can't.”

“God dammit Eren, look at me!” Jean grabbed Eren by the shoulders and forced him to turn his attention on him.

Eren wanted to throw up. He looked into his friend's eyes and they were puffy and red and so, so very swollen. His hair was a disheveled mess and his expression was one of complete and utter defeat. He looked tired and pale and the gleam that was usually in his eyes was gone.

“I'm sorry.” He choked.

“Stop it.” Jean said firmly despite his shaky appearance. “Stop it right now. I don't need your fucking apologies.”

“But it's my fault.” Eren murmured, looking down and away from his friend.

“Look,” Jean started. “I'm not going to sit here and act like maybe you could have made a few better choices last night, because we both know you could have. And I'm absolutely furious with you for putting him in that kind of position. I want to punch you in the fucking face right now.” Irritated that Eren was still facing away, he grabbed his face like like a vice grip between his palms. “Look at me when I'm talking to you, Jaeger!”

“He told me...” Eren trailed off, moving his eyes to meet Jean's.

“He told you what?” Jean asked, removing his hands from Eren's face.

“You proposed to him.” Eren said softly, clenching his fists together. “You guys were going to... and because he was taking care of my drunk ass... and now you can't...”

Jean's eyes widened and quickly welled up with fluid and before he knew it he was drowning in a river of tears that rivaled Eren's own crying. A pain in his chest that he could only describe as being stabbed repeatedly had surfaced and all he could manage to do was grab Eren tightly by the shirt, bury his face in his chest and start weeping uncontrollably.

Eren wrapped an arm around his friend and cried with him.

“I love him, Eren.” Jean's sobs were loud and desperate. “He's everything to me... And now I'll never get to see him smile again. I'll never get to hear his voice. I'll never get to watch him paint or taste his food. I'll never get to feel his touch or smell his scent... He's gone.” He gasped for air. “He's gone...”

Eren buried his head in Jean's shoulder and clenched the fabric of his shirt, crying harder at Jean's anguish.

“I'm sorry... I'm sorry...”

* * *

 

“I see. So when's the funeral?” Levi's voice was flat and emotionless like it always seemed to be and Eren couldn't decide if he was pissed off about it or not. It didn't help that he could only hear his voice over the phone, although he was sure the man was wearing his usual stoic expression. 

“Wednesday morning.” Eren's voice was hoarse, ragged from hours of crying.

“Wednesday?” Levi double checked.

“Yeah.”

“Okay. I'll cover your shifts. But I want you to come back to work on Thursday as scheduled, alright?”

“Sure.”

There was silence for a moment. Eren figured Levi would hang up. He never said “bye” at the end of a phone conversation so Eren was waiting to hear the phone click on the other end. Instead he heard Levi speak up again.

“Eren.”

“Hm?”

“If you need anything, let me know.”

The phone clicked before Eren could give a reply. He set the phone down, laid back down on his couch and stared up blankly at the ceiling. Mikasa had left earlier that morning to go back home.

“ _Call me if you need to talk.”_ She had said. _“Seriously, don't let this eat you up. You're not alone.”_

_Sure, Mikasa. Whatever you say._

* * *

 

Wednesday came soon enough and Eren had considered not going to Marco's funeral. The last thing he wanted was to see Jean turn into a sobbing mess again, and quite frankly, Eren didn't feel like he had any right to be there. But sure enough, Armin showed up at his apartment, picked out a nice outfit for Eren to wear and urged him to go. 

Eren thought the funeral would be a much more depressing event than it ended up being, however. Yes, people still cried. But many chose to use this funeral not as a day for mourning, but for celebrating the life of a young and talented man who was kind, honest, caring and most importantly, very, _very_ loved.

“Marco wouldn't want us to sit here and mope around. He'd want us to laugh and to smile and have a good time. So I ask that we use this day to honor him and remember him.” Jean had said. “All he ever wanted from anyone was just to see them smile.” And Jean did so. It was a melancholy smile. A smile formed to hide the sadness. A smile to try and convince himself that maybe, just maybe, everything will be okay.

Eren wasn't convinced.

He left the funeral early and went home to find his spot on the couch.

Several hours had passed and Eren had drifted off to sleep at some point. He was woken up by loud knocking on the door. Groaning, he sat up on the couch and stretched his arms out. Rubbing an eye, he got up and walked to the door. He checked through the peephole to see who was there and he was very surprised to see that stupid bowl cut and pale skin.

He opened the door.

“What are you-”

“Blondie says you like Will Ferrel. I have _Anchorman,_ _Talladega Nights_ , _Blades of Glory_ , or if you're feeling particularly ninties, I brought _A Night At The Roxbury_.” Levi said, making his way into Eren's apartment and dumping his bag onto the floor. “I also brought pizza. He says sausage and black olives is your favorite. I did half and half because I can't stand olives, but-”

“What are you doing here?” Eren interrupted.

“You can't sit here and mope around forever.”

“I never said I wanted you here.”

“That's too bad, kid, because here I am. I don't see you shoving me out the door.”

Eren paused, realizing that maybe he wasn't as angry as he was trying to be that Levi had suddenly shown up at his apartment. He watched as he took the box of pizza out of his bag and made his way into the kitchen. The sudden realization that Levi had come to see him without any prompting suddenly had Eren's cheeks burning. His stomach turned into a tangled mess of knots and he couldn't help but smile slightly.

“You actually have clean plates. I'm shocked.” Levi teased as he reached in Eren's cupboard. He walked out of the kitchen to hand Eren a plate. “Armin says you' haven't eaten in days. Please, dig in.”

The two of them sat on the couch and ate their pizza. Levi asked Eren how the funeral went and Eren told him it wasn't as depressing as he thought it'd be. He'd told him about how much he admired Jean's strength and his ability to speak up in front of everyone without succumbing to his own sadness, and that his eulogy was beautiful. He also told him that he left early because he felt too guilty to be there any longer.

“Eren. It's not your fault.” Levi told him.

“But if I hadn't let Ymir get me all drunk and if he hadn't been driving me home then-”

“Listen. We all make choices. We're constantly making choices. We do this in hopes that we will get an outcome that we desire. But no one really ever knows how things are going to turn out.” Levi said. He paused for a moment. “We just have to hope that we won't end up regretting those choices. And honestly, even if the outcome is one we didn't desire, does anything good ever come from wallowing in regret?”

Eren finished his pizza as he let Levi's words soak in. The room fell silent, but it was a comfortable silence. Eventually when Levi finished his last piece he spoke up.

“So which movie do you want to watch first?”

Eren looked up at the clock to see that it was close to nine o'clock at night. _How long is he planning on staying here?_ He thought.

“I don't know. Anchorman, I guess.” The first title that popped in his head. It didn't really matter to him.

Levi got up and grabbed the movie from his bag. He handed it to Eren and insisted that he get it going since he knew how his setup worked. Once Eren popped the movie in and they got passed the menu screen they both sat on either end of the couch. Levi sat on the right side with one leg dangling off the edge and the other propped up against his chest, his arm wrapped around it to keep it in place. Eren, sitting on the opposite end, rested his arms on the arm of the couch and curled his legs up on the cushion.

They watched the movie relatively quietly. Eren would laugh out loud at a few of the really cheesy jokes, which he could admit felt good after days of moping. He'd look over to Levi to see him give a small smirk here and there, but noted that he never laughed out loud.

At least, he didn't until Jack Black's character punted Ron Burgundy’s dog off a bridge.

“Haha!” Eren was thrown off and he jumped at the sudden reaction. “This is so stupid!” He chuckled. Eren smiled. He'd never seen Levi laugh before. But he was more impressed with the genuine smile that had formed briefly on his face. It left a few faint wrinkles on either side of his lips and he had a pair of faint, small dimples. Suddenly, Eren decided his attractiveness level went up quite a few notches.

The scene continued on and next thing Eren knew Ron Burgundy was crying in a phone booth and Levi was losing his shit. Eren couldn't keep his eyes on the screen. He could only watch as Levi succumbed to laughter, covering his mouth as though he realized he was in a position of vulnerability. His laugh was choppy and loud and not all like Eren expected it would sound, but he decided instantly that he loved it, and he didn't want Levi to stop.

Finally, Levi looked over to Eren and noticed he'd been staring.

“Don't look like you've just seen some supernatural occurrence, kid.” He said, trying to get his face back into it's normal expression. “I can laugh if I want to.”

Eren chuckled nervously. “I just haven't ever seen you laugh before, let alone smile like that. It's just... It's nice to see.”

Levi looked at Eren quietly, eying him up and down for a moment before shifting his sitting position. He'd moved so he was turned a little more toward Eren and placed his right leg up against the back of the couch. He beckoned with his hand and said, “Come here.”

Eren hesitated for a moment before he scooted over. He wasn't sure exactly what position Levi wanted him to sit in, but Levi made it pretty clear when he pulled Eren into his chest and wrapped his arms around his torso.

“Are you comfortable?” He asked. Eren felt the position they were in was a little awkward since his torso was a bit longer than the shorter man's, but after shifting his body a little bit he felt better.

“Yeah. This is good.” His heart fluttered as he responded.

“Good.” Levi replied as he placed his right arm parallel to Eren's. He rubbed the top of Eren's hand lightly before intertwining their fingers together. Eren responded by gripping on Levi's fingers. His heart was pounding and his cheeks were hot. He couldn't focus on the movie for a few minutes, instead he was wondering if he was dreaming or if this was actually happening.

Levi was surprisingly comfortable to lay against. Eren could tell that his build was firm under the fabric, he was pleasantly warm and his heartbeat was soothing. He felt Levi rest his head against his own and he allowed himself to smile the largest smile he'd formed in a long time.

They continued to watch the movie in this position. Levi never laughed again but Eren let out a few good chuckles. At one point Levi had started rubbing his thumb against Eren's hand and Eren pulled his arm a little further down his torso so Levi would be gripping him just a little tighter. He noticed Levi take in a deep breath in response and he couldn't help but feel a twinge of satisfaction at the sound.

The end of the movie came soon enough and the narrator was going on about the futures of the fictional characters. Eren felt Levi move his head slightly, and as if a jolt of electricity shot through his body something urged him to turn his head toward him. He moved slowly, hoping that Levi wouldn't push him away, and before he knew it he was brushing his lips against the other man's. He chose to add a little more pressure to the contact, and Levi responded in kind. Eren took a deep breath as they began to kiss gently. Slowly, the kisses began to open and become deeper, the two of them teasing each other with their tongues but not quite allowing them to intertwine just yet.

It was different than the kiss they'd shared at the bar. That kiss was purely for show on Levi's part and it lacked any real meaning, but this time his kisses were passionate and affectionate. Levi wrapped his hand behind the back of Eren's head and gently ran his fingers through his hair as they continued to caress each other's lips. Eren shifted his body so that he was now hovering over Levi, deepening the kiss further and finally allowing their tongues to mingle with each other.

Levi's touch became more assertive and he was gently squeezing Eren's hair, guiding him into a different angle. Eren sighed into a kiss as he slipped a hand under Levi's shirt and rubbed the bare skin of his abdomen, silently admiring how toned he felt. He didn't know much of Levi's personal life but if he had to guess, he was certain Levi probably spent some time at the gym. He continued to trail his hand upward when Levi finally broke off the kiss, breathing in deeply and placing his forehead against Eren's.

“Is something the matter?” Eren asked. He turned his gaze up to find Levi's eyes looking into his own.

“I can't figure out your eyes.” Levi said.

Confused, Eren asked, “What do you mean?”

“I've never seen that shade of green before. They're almost teal or something.” Levi said. He let silence fill the room for a brief moment, studying Eren's eyes just a little longer before continuing. “They're brilliant.”

Eren moved back in to start kissing the man again and Levi allowed him a few small pecks before pulling away again.

“I don't want us to get too carried away tonight.”

Eren backed up. “Okay.”

“Go put another movie in.”

“Okay.” Eren kissed Levi one more time before getting up off the couch and swapping the movie with another one. Once he got the movie going he situated himself back into the position that they held before, his head resting on Levi's chest and Levi's arm wrapped around him.

“Levi?” He asked, turning his face to make eye contact.

“Hm?”

“I think I like you.”

Levi rubbed his hand against Eren's head and pulled his bangs out of his face, leaning in and kissing his forehead lightly and whispered, “I think I like you, too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay for adorable ereri smooches?? They make everything better?


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi and Eren have breakfast together and have a talk. Levi's got a pretty sweet ride, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh. I am so sorry it took me so long to update this. I was legitimately feeling soooo guilty about killing off Marco. Like, extremely guilty. And I lost all desire to keep writing for a while and was even considering orphaning the fic.
> 
> But, I finally got over it, and I'm ready to move forward. 
> 
> This chapter is a lot of dialogue and might be kind of choppy but if I didn't do something then I probably wouldn't get the motivation to write this any further and I think I'm ready now. So hopefully we'll be back on a regular updating schedule again after this.

The morning sun was beaming in through the window and began to hit Eren's face. His eyes opened into small slits and he cursed that burning ball for being so bright. He felt a stiffness in his neck and lifted it up from the body it was resting on in order to work out the kink. The menu from the movie that they watched last was still playing on his TV and he wondered just when exactly he fell asleep.

He gently rubbed his eye and rested his chin onto Levi's chest to look up at him. Levi was still lost in sleep, his head hanging to the side ever so slightly, his mouth hanging open and a little drool trickling down his chin. He didn't imagine that Levi was such a sound sleeper and he gave himself a moment to study the older man and listen to him breathing quietly.

He leaned up and wiped the drool off of Levi's chin before giving him a soft kiss on the corner of Levi's mouth. Levi stirred under him and took in a sharp breath before blinking his eyes open to see Eren hovering over him.

“Good morning.” Eren smiled as he leaned in to kiss him again, but Levi pushed him away.

“Don't kiss me with your disgusting morning breath.” He mumbled as he sat himself upright. “Fuck, my back hurts.”

“We could have slept in my bed, you know.” Eren replied.

“You fell asleep during the movie and you looked peaceful. I didn't want to wake you up.” Levi explained. “I really wasn't intending on staying overnight at all.”

“Oh.” Eren responded.

Levi stretched his arms and arched his back in hopes of loosening up his muscles and getting some relief. “I'm too old to be sleeping on couches like this.” He groaned out mid-stretch. He looked at Eren who was wearing a disappointed look on his face. “You want to go get breakfast?”

“Sure.” Eren replied.

“What's close by?” Levi asked as he put his feet down on the floor.

“Hm? Don't you live on this side of town?” Eren asked. “The only restaurant nearby with breakfast right now is IHOP. Unless you're just wanting fast food.”

“Pancakes would really hit the spot.” Levi stated. “Come on, we'll take my ride.”

Levi asked where the pancake house was at and Eren gave him the directions. The two of them put their shoes on and made their way outside. Eren followed Levi without really paying attention to his surroundings. He let out a big yawn and when he finished he noticed that Levi was standing next to a motorcycle. It took him a moment to realize that Levi was unstrapping a helmet from the back of the seat and he put two and two together.

“Wait, you have a motorcycle?” He questioned.

“Congratulations, those giant green orbs of yours work. Now put this on.” Levi replied as he walked over to Eren to hand him the helmet.

“But what about you?” Eren asked, noting that there was only one helmet.

“I never wear it anyway.”

“But that's dangerous.”

“I know how to control the bike, Eren.” Levi said as he moved to straddle the motorcycle. “Now hurry up and get on.”

Eren hesitated but eventually followed Levi's order. He hopped up and sat behind Levi in the same straddling position. He'd never been on a motorcycle before and he was feeling a little nervous. Levi started up the bike and began to reverse it out of the parking spot.

“I've never ridden one of these before!” Eren shouted over the engine's noise.

Levi turned his head enough so that his voice would carry back to Eren and told him, “Just hold onto my waist. When I turn the bike, make sure to lean _into_ the turn, not away from the turn.” He noticed Eren's nervous expression and added, “I'm a good driver, so just enjoy the wind hitting your face and take in how free it feels to ride on one of these things, alright?”

Eren nodded, still unsure, as he placed his hands on either side of Levi's waist. Levi revved the engine and started to move the vehicle forward. Eren's grip on his waist tightened, and Levi gave a small smirk that the other wouldn't be able to see – he had to admit, part of him felt a sick pleasure in making Eren nervous and clingy like this. He drove slowly as they made their way through the parking lot, but once he turned out and onto the main road, his speed picked up quite a bit. Eren, still nervous, instinctively wrapped his arms completely around Levi's waist and he held his body close to him. Levi chuckled quietly to himself.

“Relax!” He shouted. “I know how badly you want to press your body against mine, but you're never going to enjoy the ride to its fullest if you're clinging onto me like that!”

Eren hesitated, but eventually allowed himself some slack in his grip as he moved his body away from Levi's. He kept his hands firm on Levi's waist, but he allowed himself to take in the feeling of having the wind hitting his face and brushing against his torso. Once he started to feel comfortable and realized he was enjoying this, however, Levi took a sharp turn, which had Eren clinging back onto him. Levi didn't make any comment, and once they were going straight again, Eren regained his confidence. He managed to maintain this composure until they finally arrived at the pancake house.

Levi pulled into a parking space and turned off the motorcycle. Eren got off before him and he followed suit. Levi looked back to him to see him having trouble unstrapping the helmet.

“Here.” He said as he lifted up his hands to undo the buckles himself. “Was that so bad?”

“That was really fun, actually.” Eren grinned and Levi ruffled his hair after removing the helmet. He strapped the helmet back onto his bike and the two made their way into the restaurant. The two of them were seated by a waitress and given menus. She asked what they would like to drink and both of them agreed on coffee, although Eren made a request for a lot of creamer.

Once it was served to them, Levi poured the coffee in his cup and began to drink it straight. He watched as Eren dumped some sugar into his cup, followed by what seemed like endless amounts of small creamer cups. “Do you want some coffee with your creamer?” He teased.

Eren stopped and looked up at him, embarrassed. “I'm not a fan of black coffee.” He replied.

“So just order some flavored coffee.”

“Well, you said you'd buy and I don't want to spend too much of your-”

“I have plenty of money,” Levi interrupted. “More than you'd probably be able to guess.”

“Are you trying to brag? Even with my tips I still just get by paycheck to paycheck, so I don't-”

“One, I'm not bragging. I'm just saying it like it is,” Levi started.” Two, don't compare the tips you make to mine. I get plenty of idiots, just like you, coming in and giving me twenty dollar tips in their drunken stupor after I perform a show.”

“When did I give you twenty dollars?” Eren asked, dumbfounded. Levi couldn't help but chuckle.

“Your friend didn't tell you? That first night you came to the bar. You handed me a twenty dollar bill.”

“And you took it!? Isn't there some kind of etiquette like giving someone back their money if it's too much?” Eren questioned, almost a little upset that Levi would just take that amount of money from someone.

“Calm down, kid,” Levi replied. “If you want your twenty bucks back that badly I can just give it back.”

“Well it's a little late for that now isn't it?”

“Are you guys ready to order?” The waitress chimed in.

“I'll have the chicken fried steak breakfast, eggs over hard and pancakes on the side.” Levi ordered. Eren realized he hadn't even looked at the menu and opened it in a hurry, skimming and trying to find what he wanted. “Oh, and get him some kind of flavored coffee. Probably Mocha whatever it is you have.” Levi added while Eren was still skimming the menu.

“I'll just have a short stack, I guess.” Eren said. The waitress jotted down the order on her writing pad and informed that they would have their food out when it's ready.

Levi turned his attention back to Eren. “While we're on the subject of work, I have a new drinking policy.”

“Hm?”

“Three shots. That's it.” Levi told him as he held up three fingers. “I didn't think any of my employees would be stupid enough to chug down shots like no tomorrow, and then you came along, and it caused a lot of damage.”

Eren felt his stomach turn. It's not that he had forgotten about the accident, and it was still stirring in the back of his mind constantly, but having it brought up in conversation was like having a knife shoved into his gut and twisted around. If he had any appetite before, it was gone now. “What about Ymir?” He asked.

“I had a little chat with her,” Levi started. “She told me about your stupid plan and surprisingly was willing to take the blame.” He paused a moment to take a sip of his coffee. “I know I said to take shots if they're offered but that doesn't mean not to know your limitations. So for your sake, and for the sake of idiots like her who think pulling a plan like that off is amusing, there's now a stated limit as to what I'm allowing my employees to drink.”

“I'm sorry.” Eren mumbled, looking down at his lap where his hands were cupped together.

Levi let out a sigh. “If you were curious about me – and I knew you were – you should've just said something.”

“How would you figure I was curious?” Eren asked.

“You were pretty obvious about it that night you came to the bar. And I quote, 'You have a nice ass. I would tap that.'”

Eren felt a jolt of mortification course through him. “I never said that.” He objected.

“I think you're going to be pretty disappointed,” Levi drawled, ignoring Eren's comment. “There's really not much to it.”

Eren stared at Levi in bewilderment, wondering how he could be talking about something like this so casually in a public setting. He always figured these kinds of things were best left behind closed doors and always made it a point to keep it that way in the past. He saw the waitress heading in their direction with their food and hoped that Levi was ready to drop the subject, but, of course, he didn't seem ready to.

“ _Your_ ass, on the other hand-” He started, but was quickly cut off.

“Hey, look, our food's here!” Eren said with a loud, nervous chuckle that earned him an odd look from the waitress. She set their food and their ticket down on the table and asked if there was anything else that they needed, to which Eren replied with a simple “no.”

The two of them started to dig into their meal, neither of them stopping to speak for a short while. Eventually, Levi broke the silence and asked, “What do you think about theme nights?”

“Mffmhhh?”

“Swallow your food before you talk, idiot.”

Eren gulped down the food he was chewing and repeated his intended question, “Theme nights?”

“Yeah. You know, we pick a theme, or maybe the customers can pick it, whatever works. And then we dress up based on the theme and maybe decorate the bar or something. Like, we could do a 50's theme and you can dress up in a poodle skirt.” Levi explained.

“I'm not wearing a poodle skirt.” Eren deadpanned.

“It was a joke,” Levi replied. “But Marco used to throw the suggestion out at me once and a while and I've always thought it was a good idea.”

“So why do you want to do it so suddenly?” Eren asked, unsure about how he felt about Levi's suggestion with that fact brought into light.

Levi took the last bite of his food and swallowed it before replying, “You're not the only one affected by his death, you know.”

Eren felt confused. It's not that he thought Levi didn't care about Marco or anything, but the man never seemed to put on that he was overly upset by his death. “What do you mean?”

“I failed to run my bar in a responsible way. And the accident was a result of that.” Levi explained bluntly. “So I want to do something kind of in his honor. A way of moving forward and keeping a piece of him around.”

“Levi, are you...?” Eren felt his stomach twist and turn, and for the first time since the accident it wasn't because he felt at fault for everything. Instead, he became worried that Levi was beating himself up over this without reaching out to anyone or talking about it.

“Are you finished eating?” Levi asked, not wanting to talk about the subject anymore.

“Yeah,” Eren answered, pushing his plate away.

“Then let's go.” Levi said as he set down some cash on the table.

“Aren't you going to wait for the change?” Eren asked as he watched Levi stand up.

“There's this practice of tipping your server, you know.”

“You're giving her, like, ten bucks.” Eren pointed out.

“Ever hear of the term, 'pay it forward?'” Levi asked. Eren didn't have a response. It became apparent to him that there was more to the man than he thought and he followed behind Levi in silence as they made their way back to his motorcycle. He strapped on the helmet while Levi moved to straddle the bike and Eren followed suit.

Eren knew better than to cling onto Levi this time and the ride back to his apartment went smoothly. Once they pulled into a parking spot in front of Eren's apartment, Levi turned off his bike while Eren hopped off.

“You going to come back up?” Eren asked as he took off the helmet.

Levi shook his head. Eren felt disappointed, but then Levi spoke up. “I expect to see you at work at six tonight, alright?”

“Yeah. Of course.” Eren replied as he strapped the helmet onto the back of Levi's seat.

“Make sure to bring my bag. I trust you will.” Levi added. Eren nodded and Levi started his bike back up again.

“Levi!” Eren shouted over the sound of the motor humming. Levi acknowledged him by looking in his direction. “About last night, are we...?”

“I wouldn't put a label on it, kid. Take it for what it is.” Levi answered, knowing full well what Eren was asking about, and Eren hung his head down like a puppy that just got its favorite toy taken away. He nudged his head in a gesture that told Eren he wanted him to come closer and Eren walked up to him to close the distance between them. Levi wrapped his hand behind Eren's head to pull him in for a chaste kiss and Eren felt his stomach flutter. “Don't give me those puppy eyes. I told you I like you, didn't I?”

Eren nodded.

“We'll get to play some more, don't worry your pretty little head.” Levi added with a wink before backing up the motorcycle. “Six o'clock!” He shouted before he finally drove off.

Eren stood in the empty parking spot for a moment and brushed his fingers over his lips. He was still in slight disbelief that anything had happened with Levi at all, let alone a promise that more things would be happening in the future. Between all the mixed feelings he'd had over the last week, the feeling he had right at that moment was probably the best one. And he was definitely looking forward to going into the bar tonight. 


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren's still dealing with conflicted thoughts. Ymir confronts him and has a heart-to-heart. Levi decides teasing Eren will make for some good entertainment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't really have much to say. I'm excited to get back to writing this again and I really, really appreciate the nice comments you guys left! I'm glad you're still eager to read my fic. ^_^
> 
> Enjoy! :)

Eren took a longer-than-average shower today. He got lost in his thoughts and felt conflicted because for the first time since the accident he felt happy. But he wasn't really sure he deserved to feel that happiness. Death wasn't something he had to deal with much up to this point, and he couldn't decide if it was normal to be able to feel happy like this so soon or not. But what was eating at him most was whether he was deserving of happiness because he was at fault for the accident.

But he couldn't help it. When he thought about the feeling of Levi's lips on his, the way he held him in his arms the night before, the way his tongue felt sliding against his own... It gave him butterflies. Levi was all that he could think about and he was so eager to see him again at the bar tonight he could barely stand it. He wanted to kiss him again, wrap his arms around him, feel that toned torso of his, press up against him...

A wandering hand found its way to Eren's cock and he began to stroke himself. Leaning against the shower wall with his forearm and resting his head against it, he allowed himself to get lost in thoughts about Levi. He imagined what Levi's ass would feel like, what he looked like naked, what kind of sounds he might make when he was being thrust into, what kind of lewd expressions he could wear on his face.

When he reached his completion he aimed the shower head to wash his release off from the wall. And while it was a big relief to get that sexual tension out of him, he suddenly became overwhelmed with guilt. He thought to himself that this wasn't right, that he shouldn't be getting his rocks off right now, that he shouldn't feel happy. He should be mourning. He should be crying and grieving because, well, it was his fault.

Anyone who has ever held more than a five minute conversation with Eren Jaeger could easily say that he never allowed a conversation to put the focus on himself for very long. He deflected questions by talking about his friends or family. He would find a way to shift the topic from what he's going to school for to what your favorite food is. Simply put, Eren never put himself first in any situation, and always thought of others. And Eren was perfectly aware that he did this, but he never thought much of it. It's just the way he is. And he thought for a moment that maybe this was why he felt so bad about feeling happy for once. Because he was putting himself first. And to him, that wasn't normal.

He got out of the shower and he let his mind wander back to Levi once more. Although this time it came with an even deeper pit in his stomach as he recalled what Levi had said earlier that day.

_I failed to run my bar in a responsible way. And the accident was a result of that._

Was he agonizing over this just as much as Eren was? Eren didn't think Levi cared all that much about Marco to begin with, but then he realized that he really didn't know much about the man at all. He knew that Levi was a short-statured, short-tempered thirty-two year old man who ran a successful bar. He knew that there was some kind of pact between him and Erwin Smith – who was the true owner of the bar – which he only knew because Petra had a penchant for gossip. He knew that Levi was an amazingly skilled flair bartender, but he had no idea where he'd even learned how to do what he does or who taught him. He learned today that he owns a motorcycle and that he apparently has a comfortable amount of money to work with. He knew there was a compassionate heart underneath his stoic facade. But, really, that was it.

He couldn't dwell on his thoughts all day though and when he looked at the clock it was a quarter passed five. The drive to the bar was a quick ten minutes so he still had some time to spare but he really wanted to try and look a little nicer than normal in hopes of getting Levi to want him. He opened his closet and looked down to a heap of clean laundry he had sitting in a basket. He knew Levi would be pissed at him for not having his clothes folded and put away but honestly he didn't feel it was that important and couldn't be bothered with it. He hated folding laundry. The only clothes he took care of were his bartender suits he wore on Fridays and Saturdays. He let out a sigh because it was only Thursday which meant he wouldn't be wearing nice dress pants that made his ass pop.

After digging through his clothes he wound up throwing on a pair of denim jeans and a white t-shirt under a charcoal button up with the sleeves rolled up. Eren knew he had absolutely no fashion sense but he figured this was satisfactory enough. He put on tennis shoes that probably threw the outfit off completely but he didn't really care about that and he headed out to his truck to drive to work.

He parked his truck in the back parking lot and when he got out to walk to the bar he noticed Ymir and Christa standing outside of the bar, and for the first time since the accident he finally felt angry. Angry because, really, it wasn't his fault at all that Marco died. Ymir's the one who made him drink. No. He made the decision to drink. She's just the one who supplied the alcohol.

He didn't want any confrontation and he just wanted to get inside to see Levi but Ymir stopped him.

“Eren,” She started. He pursed his lips and let out a huff as he gave her a clearly annoyed expression. “You're mad at me.”

“That sounds pretty accurate.” Eren said flatly.

“Look, Eren. I told Levi I'd take the blame for everything.”

“It doesn't really matter who takes the blame. It still doesn't change that none of us will ever get to see Marco again.” Eren replied. “Besides, you weren't the one in the car with him when it happened.”

He tried to walk passed her but she grabbed his arm and stopped him again. “Don't you get it? I'm trying to apologize!” She raised her voice.

“Ymir, don't make a scene.” Christa said. Eren looked over at Christa and then back at Ymir and sighed.

“I'm a shitty person, Eren.” Ymir started. Eren thought to himself that he couldn't disagree but kept his comment to himself. “I'm selfish and I can be a bit rude and I rarely do things for other people.” She looked at Christa. “She's always been the only exception. And she's inspired me to be a better person.”

Eren didn't know where Ymir was going with this at all. What did this have to do with Marco or anything that happened the other night?

“We owe Levi a lot.” She said.

“How?” Eren asked. There was no way they knew Levi outside of the bar atmosphere.

“About a week after the bar opened, Christa was almost sexually assaulted.” Ymir explained. Eren was told once by Marco that Levi had stopped a sexual assault shortly after the bar opened. He had no idea that it might have been someone like Christa, though. “I was too busy being a piece of shit and having an argument with some guy in the bar who had the audacity to say suggestive things about Christa. I thought she'd just gone off to the bathroom or something. Levi went out for a smoke and happened to hear her making a fuss around the corner.”

Eren looked over to Christa, who looked more indifferent than anything.

“Long story short,” Ymir went on. “He saved her. He beat that guy's ass and made sure he wouldn't be able to walk for a week. He brought her to me and she was all shaken up, but he offered her consoling words and he was kind. And he keeps an eye out for her. She's small and she's beautiful and Levi says that could make her an easy target. But he saved her when I wasn't there and for that I owe him.”

Eren's face had softened while Ymir was talking but he still had to ask, “I still don't understand what this has to do with anything.”

“Because he wants you, Eren.” Christa chimed in. “He doesn't hire people to work here. He's always said he was content with the four who already worked here and would only hire someone if one of them moved onto something else. He decided to let you work here so he'd have an excuse to make sure he gets to see you. He looks at you with adoring eyes and he talks a lot about how well you're improving as a bartender and how you're improving at flair. He likes you, Eren. He wants you.”

Eren wasn't entirely sure how accurate those words were. Granted, they made out the night before and Levi basically promised that more things were to come, but he wasn't so eager to call Eren his boyfriend or anything yet and basically just gave Eren the impression that he was rolling with the punches right now. But then, Eren hadn't been in a relationship since he was in high school and maybe this is just how adults went about things. He wasn't sure.

“You didn't sound like you were so sure about letting him know you were interested,” Ymir jumped in once more. “So I thought maybe if I got you drunk enough you'd confess or something. And maybe I decided to egg it on just a little bit by having you guys kiss for everyone else's entertainment. Or at least for my entertainment.”

“It's fine, Ymir.” Eren said. He understood now, and there wasn't really any reason to harbor any anger about something that he couldn't change. She was trying to do them both a favor and he knew that. “I really should get inside so I can clock in.” He said as he pulled out his cell phone to check the time. It was five passed six. “I'm late.”

He ran down the stairs to get to the computer by the bar and swiped his card to log in and clock on. Levi was standing at the counter wiping up some liquid with a rag.

“Sorry I'm late.” Eren said.

“It's fine. Ymir was outside, right?” Levi asked as he turned his attention to him and Eren nodded. “I figured she'd want to talk to you, so I'll let a few minutes slide.” He turned his attention back to the rag and crinkled his nose at it. Eren observed that it was dirty to the point of being unable to use again for the rest of the night.

“Here, I'll throw that in the laundry and get a new one.” Eren offered as he took the rag from Levi's hand.

“Thanks.”

Eren walked into the storage room and made his way to the supply cabinet where Levi had all the cleaning supplies stored. He threw the dirty cloth into a hamper and grabbed a new one off the shelf. He stopped for a moment and let out a sigh before turning around to find that Levi had actually followed him back and he jumped in surprise.

“Hey.” Levi said as if he hadn't even elicited a reaction from the younger man. Eren looked at him and blinked.

“What's up?”

Levi grabbed Eren's wrist and directed him behind the cabinet. He placed Eren against the wall of the cabinet and leaned up to give him a kiss and Eren allowed him to. He lightly grabbed a fist full of Eren's hair and deepened the kiss and they stayed that way for a few moments before Levi finally broke it off.

“You look good.” Levi commented as he moved his hands down to Eren's hips. “It's going to be hard to keep my hands off of you.”

Eren gulped. He had to admit that what Levi just said gave him a nice feeling. It just confirmed that Levi was attracted to him and the thought that he'd probably be eying him all night was satisfying.

“Can you make sure to keep this under wraps?” Levi asked.

“Hm? Why?”

“It's not very professional. The others might think I'm playing favorites. If Erwin found out he'd be pissed. Bosses aren't supposed to fool around with their employees. It's like... against the rules or some shit.” Levi said.

“But you kissed me in front of everyone the other night.” Eren pointed out.

“That was a completely different thing.” Levi waved dismissively. He firmed his grip on Eren's hips and leaned up once again, lightly brushing his lips against Eren's and murmuring, “That wasn't anything like this,” before he pressed his lips against the younger man's once more. Eren awkwardly grabbed Levi's biceps and returned the kiss, and Levi gave him a playful lick to his upper lip and rolled his hips, eliciting a whimper from the brunet, and immediately backed off afterward.

“Fuck, Levi, what was that for?” Eren breathed as he felt the heat rush into his cheeks and his blood rush into a lower area.

“To tease you.” Levi smirked.

“I thought you said you don't want us to get too ahead of ourselves.”

“I did. I don't want to take things too fast but I want it to be good when we reach that point. And I know we will, because I can see how hungrily you're looking at me just from a simple hip roll, and I think it's safe to say you won't lose interest.” Levi replied playfully. “I'll get you so sexually frustrated that you won't be able to hold back.”

After silently noting that Levi just suggested he wanted their first time together to be memorable, Eren took his statement as a challenge and decided two could play at that game.

“I'm going to put you upstairs with Petra tonight.” Levi stated.

“Why? You never put me upstairs anymore.” Eren asked, half protesting Levi's decision. It's not that he didn't like working with Petra but he wanted to be downstairs with Levi.

“Auruo's out of town today doing some flair competition.” Levi explained. “I don't like her up there without someone else. Lots of creepers in this city.”

“I never see Auruo do flair here? Why is that?” Eren asked.

“He doesn't want to.” Levi answered. “I offered to let him take a shot at it but he says this isn't really the kind of place he wants to perform in. Surprising, really, because he's a cocky little bastard, I'd thought he'd want to show off.”

Eren couldn't really object to that last statement, but speaking of creepers, “Hey.”

“Hm?”

“Ymir said that Christa almost got-”

“What about it?” Levi cut off, knowing full well what Eren was going on about.

“Well, I just think that it's pretty remarkable what you did. I mean... So many people just turn the other cheek.” Eren explained.

“I'm not a hero, if that's what you're trying to get at,” Levi started. “It's called being a decent fucking human being and not a wild animal like that guy.” He turned to start walking away. “Come on, we've spent enough time in here.” But Eren grabbed his arm before he could get too far. Levi let out a loud, almost aggravated sigh and quirked his eyebrow.

“Just one more kiss before we go back out there? I'll barely even get to see you tonight.” Eren pouted, sticking out his bottom lip. Levi couldn't say no to that face and approached the younger man one more time. Eren made sure they were still out of sight, pulled him in by the waist and kissed him deeply. Levi allowed his hands to travel up behind Eren's head and ran his fingers through his hair and Eren took the opportunity to allow his hands to wander down south and finally cop a feel of Levi's ass. Levi let out a short groan before pulling away.

“Oi. Don't do that here.” He said sternly, although he was blushing slightly. Eren felt pretty proud about the flush in Levi's cheeks that he'd just caused and couldn't help but chuckle.

“Why not? You can rub your junk against mine but I can't grab your ass?” He smirked. “Doesn't seem like a very fair way to play this game.”

Levi caught onto what that meant quickly enough and he crossed his arms. “You think you're a sly little fucker don't you? Okay. If you want to make this a game then we will. First one to cave has to bottom, deal?”

Eren wasn't sure how he felt about having a dick shoved up his ass repeatedly. But he supposed if it was Levi's, it probably wouldn't be so bad. “Deal.” He agreed.

He headed upstairs to join Petra at the bar. It was slow. It normally was at this time. Business never usually picked up until around eight or so.

“How are you feeling?” Petra asked as he walked behind the bar stand.

“I'm okay.” Eren answered. It was probably the most accurate answer he could give. Yes, he was excited about all of the possibilities with Levi that were quickly unfolding, but he was still upset at himself for everything else. It was a strange blend of emotions and really “okay” was the only way he felt that he could describe it. Saying he was doing well would have been a lie.

Petra gave him a soft and understanding smile. She'd always been so kind to Eren right from the start and even though she didn't always know what to say to him when he was feeling down, she provided a strange sense of comfort. “The girls will be happy to see you back.” She chuckled.

 _Girls._ Eren had always been interested in girls exclusively until he saw Levi. He dated girls in high school and he even lost his virginity to a girl. He still liked them, of course. Levi wasn't going to change that fact. Plenty of cute girls came into the bar and they flirted with Eren and he'd flirt back. It didn't bother him that he liked Levi. It was just strange for him. He didn't think he was anything other than straight, but maybe that was only because that's what he was expected to be. He's not sure what he would classify as now, but he didn't want to question it. As plenty of people say, _it is what it is_.

He gave Petra a playful and flirtatious wink. “I'll be glad to see the ladies again.” He smiled. Honestly, he didn't care. He was focused on Levi now and he knew that the black-haired man was who he wanted. But if flirting was going to give him a few extra dollars then he would absolutely do it.

A few hours passed and Armin stopped by. He found a seat at the bar and handed Eren a ten dollar bill to buy a mixed drink which Eren quickly prepared for him.

“How'd things go with Levi last night?” He asked.

“Good. He doesn't really want me bringing anything up at work though so I'll have to talk to you later about it.” Eren replied. “He said you're the one who told him I like Will Ferrel movies. What did you say to him anyway?”

“I came in the other night and he asked how you were doing,” Armin started. Eren felt his stomach flutter at the thought that Levi was the one who brought him up in a conversation. “I just said you were still pretty depressed about everything and I didn't know how to cheer you up. He asked what's something that makes you laugh and I said you really love Will Ferrel. Then he said he wasn't working on Wednesday and he'd see what he can do.”

Eren suspected that Armin had been the one to suggest Levi come over with some movies last night after Levi had brought him up. He would have never guessed the whole thing was Levi's idea. He looked at Armin and noticed the blond boy smiling at him.

“You've got a pretty goofy smile on your face right now.” Armin commented. Eren hadn't even noticed but when his attention was brought to it, he did notice that his lips were stretched pretty wide. “Something good must have happened.”

Eren shrugged. “I just didn't think he really thought about me much.”

Armin let out a chuckle before allowing his expression to grow a little more serious.

“Jean's going to have a get together on Saturday. He wanted to know if he should expect you.”

Eren's smile instantly left his face. “I don't know...” He mumbled.

“He's not angry at you. I know you didn't get as close with him as you did Marco but it's not like he doesn't enjoy having you around.” Armin said.

The problem wasn't whether Jean was mad at him. The problem was that Eren wasn't sure he could go in that house again and look at those paintings. He didn't want to be there and not see Jean and Marco snuggling up to each other and sharing kisses and arguing with each other over silly games. He just didn't want to be there and feel the utter lack of Marco.

“He still wants to be friends. And he has something he wants to give to you anyway.” Armin continued.

“Why would he want to give me anything?” Eren asked, a confused expression on his face.

“I can't get into the details. It's something you need to talk to Jean about.” Armin answered.

“Well, yeah, I guess you can count me in, then.” Eren replied hesitantly.

“Good.” Armin said. “It'll be nice to have you around.”

Eren wasn't so sure about that.

Armin didn't stay around much longer after that and the bar managed to stay pretty steady that night. Eren was okay with it as it was able to get his mind off of everything. Occasionally Levi would stop upstairs to see how things were going and Eren would take the opportunity to “drop” something and bend over for it or brush a hand up against him if he got close enough.

Levi wasn't playing around however, and Eren decided to forfeit tonight's round of their game when he brought his mouth to Eren's ear and whispered, “I bet you have a nice, thick cock. I can't wait to get my mouth around it.”

 _Holy shit,_ Eren thought and he instantly felt the blood rushing to his groin. _Is that how he talks in bed?_ He had a strong feeling he was going to be the loser if that's the type of game Levi wanted to play. He never was much of a dirty talker himself, but he's always liked hearing it. He made a mental note that Levi must like it too and he'd work on some phrases that he could use against Levi to make him want to drop to his knees and do just as he suggested.

Closing time came rolling around soon enough. Petra had left at twelve, leaving Eren to take care of the upstairs bar alone. He assumed Gunther must have left too because once everyone was cleared from the bar Levi came upstairs to lock the front door and said, “I'm going out back for a quick cigarette before I leave if you want to join me.” Eren looked to make sure everything was cleaned and put away to Levi's satisfaction and followed the older man out back. Levi had already lit up a cigarette and was puffing away at it.

“I never see you smoke those outside of work.” Eren commented.

“Because I don't.” Levi replied with a shrug. “There's just something about being at a bar that always gets me itching for one. Old habits die hard I guess.”

It was silent for a moment, but it wasn't uncomfortable. There was a warm summer breeze passing through and it was nice to be out where the air was fresh and Eren could hear the cars driving along the street.

“Jean's coming back to work tomorrow. You going to be okay with that?” Levi asked.

Eren tensed up. “I think I'll be alright.” He said. It was a half-truth. It didn't bother him to see Jean at the funeral and it's not like he'd be seeing him a lot at work anyway since they'd be in different areas. Still, being at the funeral was one thing, being back at the origin of everything was something else entirely.

In his need to change the topic, he had to ask, “By the way, what the hell was up with that comment you made earlier?”

Levi smirked. He knew exactly what Eren was talking about. “Don't fuck with me at work in front of everyone,” was all he said before giving a quick flick of his cigarette. “I'm going home, you better get going too.”

He started making his way to his motorcycle, which he had parked along the side of the back patio of the bar, and Eren followed him. He mounted the bike and looked at the brunet. “Hm?”

“Don't I get a kiss goodnight or something?” Eren asked.

“You're really needy.” Levi commented before leaning up to give him a few small pecks. “We've barely even established we have a thing for each other.”

“You're the one who's already determined that we're going to fuck.” Eren shot back.

Levi couldn't argue that, and maybe it was too soon for him to be fooling with the idea but he also knew that Eren has wanted to since he first laid eyes on him.

“Speaking of," Eren added. "I can't wait until you get your mouth around my cock.”

Levi held back a laugh. “Is that all you've got? You're going to have to do better if you want me to get on my knees for you.”

Eren gave Levi a smug, toothy grin and despite his insecurity on his ability to dirty talk he responded, “Oh, I'm just getting warmed up.”

Levi lifted his hand up and ruffled Eren's hair before pulling him in for one last kiss for the night. “Go home.” He turned on his bike and revved it up, looked Eren up and down real quick before giving him a small smile, and took off.

Eren really can't recall Levi smiling or even smirking all that much before but he seemed to be doing it a lot today. It made him feel good to know that he was probably the cause for that. As he made his way to his truck and noticed he was wearing a smile himself. He wasn't sure exactly what this was but he was excited to see how it will unfold.

And he also had to admit, he was excited to play this little game they started, too.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The bar crew discusses theme nights. Eren has to face Jean. Levi uses his own method to keep Eren from being overridden with guilt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if this update took a while. I wasn't getting the inspiration I needed but I found some today, so here we are. 
> 
> Thank you so much for the comments and the love you guys, it really means a lot to me. ^_^  
> I hope you guys enjoy this chapter.

Eren woke up to hear knocking on his front door. He groaned and looked at his phone to check the time.

**7:36am**

_Why?_ He thought as he sluggishly got up out of his bed and walked out to the hallway. The knocking continued and he could hear a voice humming through the door that he recognized all too well.

“I know you're in there. It's time to wake up so I can get my bag that you didn't return to me.” It was a light, teasing tone but it just made Eren feel irritated.

He unlocked and opened the door. “Fucking hell, Levi, it's seven thirty in the morning what are-”

“You never told me you look so sexy when you first wake up.” Levi interrupted, a smirk on his lips as he eyed Eren's body.

Eren looked down and blushed, realizing he was wearing nothing but a loose pair of plaid boxers. He was sure that his hair was standing up everywhere too. He got the most ridiculous bedhead some nights.

“You saw me yesterday morning when I woke up.” Eren argued, trying to deflect Levi's comment. Levi gently pushed Eren to the side and made his way into the apartment. “Why are you over here so early anyway?”

Levi walked into the dining area and picked up the bag he had left there the day before and hoisted it over his shoulder. “I just came here to get this. I told you to bring it to me last night and you failed to do so.”

“It's so early...” Eren mumbled, rubbing his eye.

“Well, I need to return these movies to Red Box before I get charged an arm and a leg for them. But more importantly I need to go the gym and I need to bring a change of clothes with me and this happens to be my only bag.” Levi explained.

“Why would you get up so early when you stay up so late?” Eren asked as he watched Levi move closer to him. The older man settled his hands around Eren's hips, just above the lining of his boxers, standing barely centimeters away from him.

“I don't sleep much. And I like to go to the gym early. Do I really need to explain myself?” He leaned up and gently planted kisses on Eren's jawline and Eren let out a sigh as he put his hands around Levi's waist, urging him to get closer.

Levi responding by kissing Eren's neck, just under his jawline, but he only stayed that way for a few seconds before pulling away. Eren let out a whine of protest that Levi would describe as pitiful at best. He looked over the brunet once more and let out a small chuckle.

“I need to get going. You should do something about that morning wood down there.” He said as he pointed to Eren's crotch.

Flustered, Eren replied, “Maybe _you_ should do something about it because you're the reason it's there.”

“You're already so willing to end this little game we started?” Levi teased.

“Sucking me off isn't the same as having sex.” Eren stated.

“I beg to differ. It's still getting you off.” Levi argued as he opened the door to leave. He paused when he was through the doorway and looked back to Eren. “Be at the bar at four today. I'm having a meeting so we can talk about theme night possibilities and make sure everyone's on board.”

“Okay.” Eren sighed.

“Also, we need to pick back up on your flair lessons.” Levi added. “It's been a couple weeks and I've invested too much time into this already just to stop.”

“Of course.” Eren agreed as he placed his hand against the door, ready to close it when Levi left. “When do you want to start doing them again?”

“Monday sounds good.” Levi said. “Anyway, I'm leaving. Do something about your boner.”

Eren looked down to see that the tent in his boxers was still definitely there, and when he looked back up he noticed Levi was already walking down the apartment stairs. He let out an audible “tch” and shut the door.

 _He's really weird sometimes_ , Eren thought as he made his way back to the bedroom. 

* * *

The day went by fast enough and Eren showed up early for his shift at the bar. He wasn't scheduled until six like usual but since Levi asked him to be there early, there he was. Everyone was huddled around a couple of the basement tables that they had smashed together. Petra and Auruo were sitting on one side arguing with each other, while Gunther and Erd sat on the other in silence. Hanji was sitting on one of the ends and there were a few vacant seats left. Eren plopped down in the space between Gunther and Hanji.

“Haven't seen you in a while. How you holding up?” Hanji asked Eren with a smile.

“I'm fine. Levi's been-” He stopped himself, not wanting to spill the beans about their not-relationship. “I'm fine.”

Hanji leaned into Eren's ear. “It's alright. I kind of had the feeling you guys had a little something going on anyway.”

Eren blushed a deep red. “Do you think everyone else thinks that too?” He whispered back. Hanji could only let out a quick giggle before Levi came into the room from upstairs. He was carrying a small chalkboard with him.

“Alright guys,” He started as he set the chalkboard down. “Sorry to ask you to come here on such short notice but I figure some of you have to be here now anyway and the rest of you don't have lives.”

“Speak for yourself, Levi, I've got a wife at home and she wasn't too happy about me leaving for work early.” Erd jumped in with a laugh. Eren smiled. Erd always spoke so fondly of his wife and how wonderful she was and how they were trying for a baby. He always closed on Fridays but any other day that he worked he was given the four to midnight shift.

“You're just lucky I had the day off from my other job.” Hanji chimed in, crossing her arms and kicking her feet up onto the table.

“Hanji get your grimy feet off the table.” Levi demanded immediately. She groaned but quickly complied. Levi cleared his throat and began. “Okay, so I've already mentioned it to all of you at some point during the last week, but I just want to make sure we're all in agreement on the idea. I want to start doing theme nights. Preferably starting next weekend.”

“I think the idea is kind of silly,” Auruo spoke up. “What are you hoping to gain from it? We already get a shitload of customers.”

“We're fine on customer flow, but it could always bring in more revenue and tips. And I figured maybe you guys would find it fun.” Levi answered.

Petra raised up a hand as if she were in class waiting to be called on. Eren always felt that she could be too polite at times.

“Petra just speak up, seriously.” Levi said with a deadpan look on his face.

“I'm fine with it as long as you don't make me wear some skimpy clothing. If some guy puts his hands on me because I'm wearing a sexy maid outfit don't think I won't hesitate to sock him square in the face.” She stated.

Eren always wondered why Levi always wanted to make sure someone was working with her. Granted, there were creeps that came in, that was unavoidable, but even though Petra was sweet, she seemed adept and able to defend herself if the situation called for it.

“I won't make you wear anything your uncomfortable in.” Levi responded. “I'd rather see Eren in a maid costume anyway.”

Hanji let out a loud snort and Eren instantly became beet red. He was used to being the one who got poked fun at, he was the newest and youngest one there after all, but he felt a little more mortified than normal because of the recent developments between him and Levi. Part of him had a feeling Levi wasn't really joking that much.

“Anyway, it doesn't sound like anyone is against the idea,” Levi left a space for one last chance for his employees to protest before continuing. “So I wanted to get some of your ideas.”

“Pimps and hookers.” Hanji blurted out with a wide smile on her face.

“Hanji... no.” Levi gave the woman a look of scorn. “Can we try and take this seriously?”

“But you said you wanted it to be fun.”

“I'm pretty sure Petra doesn't want to dress up as a hooker.” He said as he pointed over to Petra.

“She can be a pimp!” Hanji grinned. “Eren can be the hooker!”

“What!?” Eren sputtered. “No!”

The banter continued for a small amount of time before others started giving out their ideas. Gunther recommended doing an old west theme, Erd threw out the suggestion of dressing as cops, and Petra chimed in with a 50's theme just like Levi had mentioned to Eren before. Levi wrote all of the suggestions down on the chalkboard that he had brought with him and when the list had ten good ideas he said that would suffice for the time being.

Levi told Eren he could go home and come back for his scheduled shift but Eren insisted on staying. He got on his phone and used the bar's wifi for access to the internet and kept himself occupied in one of the booths. He got lost in concentration as he scrolled through the site he was on and eventually Levi approached him and sat down.

“You look troubled.” He said.

“Hm? Oh, I'm just trying to figure out what classes I should sign up for.” Eren stated. “School's starting back up in about a month so I need to start getting ready to go back.”

“You don't seem very thrilled.” Levi replied.

“I'm not. I only need to take a few classes this semester and it's not enough to put me down as a full-time student. So unless I find other meaningless classes to do it'll be impossible to get financial aid.” Eren explained. “To be honest, I've considered not going back at all.”

“Don't do that to yourself.” Levi said. “You're already going to owe a bunch of money from loans and you only have one year left. Just finish so you have something to show for all the money you're putting in.”

Eren huffed. “It's just a piece of paper that doesn't even guarantee me a good job. I'll probably just end up typing on a computer and pushing papers every day for the rest of my life.”

“It's better than getting yourself stuck on the streets and scrambling for any means to get by.” Levi pointed out. Eren couldn't help but feel that was a very specific thing for Levi to bring up, but he tried not to think too hard about it. There was no way Levi had any personal experience with something like that. No way. “Maybe you could use your business savvy and help me open up a bar of my own.” Levi added with a chuckle.

“If you want to, sure.” Eren answered, half-serious about his reply.

“I was joking, kid.” Levi said. “I'm content with this. Erwin gave me a pretty nice set up.”

“I've been meaning to ask,” Eren started. “What the story with you two anyway? Petra said you guys have some kind of deal going on which is why he's pretty much never here and lets you run things instead.”

Levi stood up, placed his hands behind his back and arched it, stretching. “That's a story for another day.” He said before walking behind the bar counter. He looked up at the clock on the wall and added, “You better get yourself ready to work. It's almost six.”

* * *

The next few hours went by relatively fast. Eren wasn't particularly thrilled about it because Jean was expected to be there at nine to start getting his DJ stand set up and ready for Levi to do his usual flair routine. Levi seemed to feel his tension building with each passing minute and tried to get his mind in other places. But no amount of dirty talk or light teasing was easing the twisting, turning knot that was forming in his stomach. Eren was appreciative of Levi's efforts to get his mind in other places but tonight wasn't a good night to be playing their game. 

Before he knew it, he saw Jean approaching the bar counter. Eren was on the opposite side of the room but he saw Jean lean on the counter and talk to Levi. Eren tried to distract himself by picking up a few shot glasses so he could clean them.

“Eren!” Levi shouted over the noise in the room. Eren looked up at him and Levi beckoned a finger. Eren gulped, set the glasses down and walked over. “Go help Jean unload his van.”

“Sure.” Eren mumbled. He felt a little angry that Levi asked him to do this, but he figured there was a reason for it. Without saying a word, he followed Jean through the bar, up the stairs and out to the back parking lot.

“Armin says you agreed to come over tomorrow?” Jean asked, wanting a confirmation of the conversation Eren had with his friend the night before.

“Erm, yeah. Unless you don't want me to anymore.” Eren replied.

“No, I want you to come.” Jean said flatly as he started grabbing some equipment from his van. “Everyone likes having you around so whatever.”

Eren grabbed the equipment from Jean so he could carry it down to the basement. Jean stopped him before he could go, however.

“Marco had something he was going to give you. I figure he'd still want it to get to you and frankly, I'm tired of looking at it, even if it _is_ his work.” He explained, wrinkling his nose in an obvious distaste.

“Wait,” Eren stopped. “He painted something for me?” It was strange trying to absorb the information. They had gotten close over the weeks, but Eren didn't think they were _that_ close that Marco was willing to use his personal time to do something nice like that for him. He wondered what it could possibly be.

“Well, he never got a chance to finish it. Said it would still take him a few weeks to get in all the details he wanted. But guess who's fault that is.” Jean replied with an obvious attitude.

“Don't.” Eren said warningly. Suddenly the atmosphere between them shifted into something dangerous. Jean was being fairly civil just a minute ago and then he threw that curve ball and Eren wasn't about to deal with it. Not tonight. Not ever.

“Sorry.” Jean said with an obvious insincerity. “It's just kind of hard not to be angry at the person who got my fiance killed.”

Eren deliberately dropped the equipment he was holding in his hand. That was it. He didn't need to hear any more.

“You know what? Stop. We're not doing this.” He said sternly. “I've been agonizing over this since it happened. I watched you cry and I cried with you, begging, practically groveling for your forgiveness and I thought I had it. What the fuck is wrong with you tonight?” Eren had to admit, he was confused. Armin had said, clear as day, that Jean still wanted to be Eren's friend. But Jean's behavior was indicating something completely different.

“First off, don't fucking drop my equipment like that. Shit's expensive!” Jean yelled. “Second, I'm really fucking pissed off today. I didn't want to come back here but here I am. Why? Because I need money, and this is where I go to get it because Levi pays me generously well.”

“That doesn't mean you need to take it out on me!” Eren shouted back, adrenaline rushing through his body.

A moment of silence passed and Jean let out a sigh as he ran his fingers through his hair.

“Sorry.” He said, this time with more weight in the word. “It's just... It's a bad day.”

Ah, yes, there was that twisting feeling in Eren's stomach again. Jean was obviously still going to be hurting about this. Eren was slowly starting to move on but Jean had so much history with Marco, so many memories, so many future plans...

Eren picked up the equipment and checked to make sure nothing was broken. It seemed alright, as far as he could tell. He looked up at Jean, who had his fingers pressed up against a quivering lip, obviously trying to fight back the tears that were threatening to come.

“Sorry for throwing this down. We better get you set up so Levi can do his routine...” He said before heading down the stairs.

The rest of the night was tense, and Eren tried to avoid any further contact with Jean. Levi did his routine to “This Afternoon” by Nickelback. Even the lightheartedness and fun the song was supposed to produce couldn't dispel the thick air that was in the room that was threatening to suffocate Eren completely.

Once the night was over and the bar was closed, Eren helped Jean take his equipment back up to his van. They stayed silent most of the time, but Eren confirmed that Jean still wanted him over the next night before Jean took off. Levi waited outside as they finished their conversation, puffing at his cigarette and watching them carefully. Once Jean was gone, Levi finally spoke up.

“You're tense.” He pointed out.

“Yeah...” Eren trailed off, looking down at his feet. Levi took one final inhale of his cigarette before flicking it on the ground and putting it out with his shoe. “You know, for being such a clean freak, I'm surprised you just willingly throw your cigarettes down like that.” Eren commented.

“There's really nothing else to do with them here.” Levi pointed out. “Come on, let's get on the bike.” He added as he started walking over to his motorcycle.

“Hm? You want me to go with you?” Eren asked as he stumbled after Levi. “Are you finally going to let me come over to your place?”

“Fuck no.” Levi said. “I just have somewhere I want to take you so you can clear your head. Unless you're too tired.”

Eren was never tired if Levi was involved.

“No, I'm fine. Let's just get out of here.”

Eren tried to get away with not putting on the helmet, but Levi insisted he wouldn't move until Eren did so. Once he had it strapped on, Levi revved up the bike and took off. They rode through town for a while and Eren enjoyed the cool night air whipping against his face. He noticed that eventually they were no longer in town, but on a country highway. He had no idea where they were going, but eventually Levi pulled off onto a gravel road and lowered his speed. After a few more minutes they arrived at their destination in front of a worn down abandoned farmhouse. Eren felt a little creeped out, honestly.

“We're not going in there are we?” He asked while he took off the helmet.

“Why? You believe in ghosts?” Levi asked teasingly.

“No, it's just creepy.” Eren said, although he didn't have a real opinion on the possibility of ghosts existing.

“Maybe another day I'll take you inside. The second floor balcony is pretty neat to hang out on. But I just want to lay in the grass right now.” Levi said as he flopped himself onto the ground.

“Isn't that dirty?” Eren asked.

“I'll shower it off when I get home.” Levi replied. “You act like I'm OCD or something.”

Eren let out a sigh and dropped down next to Levi. They laid in silence for a while and Eren looked up to the sky. It was clear tonight, and outside of town he could see way more stars than he normally did. It really was a sight to behold. After some time, he felt Levi intertwine their fingers together, pulling Eren's hand up and pressing his lips against it. Eren took that as a cue to scoot a little closer.

“I said your eyes were teal the other night,” Levi began. “That was really dumb. They're so obviously such a vibrant green.”

Eren's heart instantly started pounding. “Levi?”

“I can't wait to see how blown they get and how much your pupils dilate when I'm trailing kisses down your stomach and teasing your dick with my mouth.” Levi smirked.

Eren couldn't help but laugh. “And here I thought you were trying to be romantic for a second,” He said. “Maybe you should start doing that right here, right now.”

“That sounds so enticing.” Levi deadpanned. “You're shit at dirty talk. Besides, I'm not going to do something like that in a place like this. Not yet anyway.”

He rolled himself on top of the younger man and gently pressed their lips together. Once he pulled off, he traced Eren's bottom lip with his thumb and said, “Doesn't mean we can't make out for a little while.” And he moved back in, kissing Eren with more passion and fervor, grabbing some of Eren's hair with one hand and tracing his waist with the other. Eren pulled him closer by the small of his back and allowed his hands to wander up and down Levi's spine, tracing gently as they exchanged saliva.

They stayed that way for a while, their kissing gradually becoming deeper and more passionate. Eventually and without thinking, Eren started to slide his hand down Levi's pants and got a good feel of the man's ass before Levi finally pulled off.

“Don't forget our game, kid. Hands off.”

“Levi...” Eren whined and he pulled his hands out. “Do we really have to do this? I already want you so bad.”

“We're not about to fuck in the grass in front of an abandoned farmhouse.” Levi said. “And honestly, I just don't want to go that far with you yet, alright?”

“Why not?”

“Because, you little shithead,” Levi started. “Experience has only proved to me that rushing right into sex in a relationship just fucks over the entire thing.”

“Huh?” Eren had to admit, Levi lost him on that one.

“I told you I like you. I don't say sentimental shit like that to just anyone. I genuinely like you, and I don't want to ruin this before it even has an actual chance.”

Eren couldn't help the words that spilled out of his mouth next. “If you like me so much why don't you want to be my boyfriend?”

Levi sighed and pushed himself off of Eren and stood up. “Because putting a label on it adds pressure.” He explained. “It doesn't mean I'm not willing to be committed to this, though. So don't think that's the issue here.”

Eren really couldn't understand anything coming out of Levi's mouth but he thought it was best not to question it. He got up on his own feet and moved in to hold Levi. “You sound like someone really betrayed you in the past.”

Levi wrapped his arms around Eren and replied simply, “I'll leave that to your imagination.” They stayed like that for a few moments before Levi finally broke them apart. “Let's go home.”

“You sound like we're going back to the same place.” Eren chuckled.

Levi straddled his bike and threw the helmet toward Eren. “I'm tired and I don't feel like driving around everywhere. Let's just go back to your apartment and deal with the vehicle situation in the morning.”

Eren wasn't about to object, and he smiled big as they drove back into town, knowing that he was going to sleep with Levi in his arms tonight. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We'll probably be digging into Levi's past here soon. Just a heads up. :)


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a morning spent in Eren's apartment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Long story short, I don't know what I'm doing, but I wanted to get another chapter out for you guys so here it is. 
> 
> I guess it's told more in Levi's perspective, I felt the need to change it up a little bit since the focus has been mostly on Eren.

It was Sunday morning and Levi was woken up to the chime of the messaging alert on his phone. He checked the time before opening the message – it was almost ten – and realized that he had slept in. He was almost always awake before seven, but something about sleeping alone last night bothered him and it took him a long time to fall asleep. When he saw the name on the incoming message, he felt his heart warm, because the culprit for his current frame of mind was the one trying to get a hold of him. He opened the message.

**Eren:** missed u in my bed last night

Levi would never admit that sappy shit was a weakness of his. And although he had considered allowing Eren to see his softer side a lot sooner than he’d been willing to show previous partners, he opted to keep up his usual façade. Well, as well as he could anyway. There was just something about Eren that was different from anyone he’d been interested in before. But then, Levi always used to stick with a bad crowd.

**Levi:** Not my fault you chose to go to Jean’s last night.

He waited a minute and his phone chimed again.

**Eren:** u were invited not my fault u didnt go

Levi was about to text Eren back with a retort, but Eren sent another text before he could finish.

**Eren:** about that… are u doing nething right now?

Levi cringed at Eren’s texting style, but knew he shouldn’t let it get to him. It’s not like he was a particularly fast texter himself, and surely typing words out completely didn’t really help his speed. He hated admitting he wasn’t as adept with today’s technology as he probably should be.

**Levi:** I was sleeping but you interrupted that. What do you need?

It came off a little brash but Levi figured that if Eren was expecting anything different by now, then he wasn’t really paying much attention to Levi at all the last couple months. And if that was the case then maybe Eren wasn’t such a special flower after all.

**Eren:** im feeling a little down n wouldnt mind some company. armin stayed with jean last night and im kind of irritated with him neway.

**Levi:** Sure, give me 30 minutes.

Levi got himself out of bed and headed straight for the bathroom to take a piss and hop in the shower. He mulled over what could be bothering Eren while he washed himself from head to toe. He figured it probably had something to do with Marco – he knew there was no way that Eren wasn’t still thinking about the whole mess, and surely going to Jean’s last night didn’t help any.

Once he was done getting himself washed he stepped out and grabbed a towel, dried off and wrapped it around his waist. He stood in front of the sink and pulled out his toothbrush and toothpaste from the medicine cabinet and took a moment to get his dental hygiene in order. Once the fog from the mirror began to dissolve a bit he ruffled his hair until it fell into its usual place. He combed it down real quick and ruffled it again just a little to put some body back into it. He considered putting the blowdryer to it, but he told Eren it would be thirty minutes and he’d already taken fifteen to get ready.

After throwing on a clean outfit and feeding his fish, he grabbed his keys from his counter and headed out the door. He opted not to take his motorcycle and decided to stick to his car instead.

It was about a fifteen minute drive to get to Eren’s apartment, but Levi stopped by a fast food joint to pick up some breakfast and luckily he caught them before they swapped over for lunch. He knew it would make him a little late but he knew it was important not to skip breakfast and he figured Eren likely hasn’t had anything to eat yet either. Normally he would opt to take Eren to a sit down restaurant but he didn’t really know what to expect when he showed up at the apartment.

Luckily for Levi, Eren answered the door with a normal expression. Not necessarily cheerful, but not gloomy and depressed either. Just a small, sheepish smile. He stood there wearing a simple black t-shirt and a pair of green athletic shorts and Levi couldn’t help but admire how good Eren looked in such simple clothing.

“You know you really don’t have to knock anymore. I think we’re kind of beyond that.” Eren commented after he opened the door.

“Call me old fashioned.” Levi replied, handing out the bag of food for Eren to take. “Here, I’m sure you haven’t eaten yet today and you shouldn’t skip meals.”

Eren took the bag and peeked inside to see the contents as Levi walked in and removed his shoes. Eren never cared about shoes in the apartment but Levi did it out of habit. The thought of someone tracking dirt and other debris from outside through the house disgusted him and it just made it that much harder to keep your home clean.

He heard Eren giving him a warm “thank you” in the background but didn’t acknowledge it because his attention was brought to a painting that was propped up against the wall in Eren’s empty dining area. It was incomplete, the bottom third of the canvas was blank but the top was detailed and vibrant. From what Levi could make of the painting, Eren was supposed to be the focal point. But there was a second figure standing at Eren’s back and from the profile Levi could tell it was meant to be him.

Eren was depicted smiling, standing with broad shoulders and a flair bottle in his hand. The smile was big, and his eyes were shimmering. He was wearing a nice bartender outfit with a bowtie – the kind Levi always wore on Saturday nights – and his hair was depicted as the usual ruffled brown mess that it is. Levi stood at Eren’s back with his face at a profile angle. He wasn’t smiling, which was fine, because Levi usually wore a poker face at the bar anyway, but he was tossing up a flair bottle in the background. He was also wearing his usual weekend outfit to match Eren. In the background were the shelves in the bar where the alcohol was stored and it was filled with many vibrant colors and detail, even down to some of the chips and dents that were in the wood framing of the shelves. It really was a very well-done painting, and Levi had to hand it to Marco, the guy had some skills.

“I don’t know what to do with it.” Eren commented as he stood next to Levi.

“Hang it up, of course.” Levi replied, crossing his arms over his chest.

“I don’t feel like I have any right to have it.” Eren mumbled in response. It took Levi a couple seconds to register what Eren even said and he let out a heavy sigh.

“He made it for you. He wanted you to have it.” He turned to face Eren. “You need to stop moping around about this.”

Eren grimaced at Levi’s comment and took a deep breath. “You weren’t there, Levi. You weren’t in the car when -”

“Stop. You hardly even remember what happened. You were plastered. There’s nothing that you could do and you can’t go back and change anything,” Levi snapped as he cut Eren off. “To be blunt, it’s getting annoying listening to you wallowing in self-pity. It’s pathetic really, because I didn’t sense that you’re the type to just let something eat you alive. And I’m going to say it because no one else will – you’re only sitting here feeling sorry for yourself. Not everything is about you.” He saw Eren flinch at the words but he didn’t have any problem throwing them out there. They were words Eren needed to hear.

“Why don’t you take all these balled up emotions you’re feeling and do something with them? Marco doesn’t seem like the type of person who would want you to sit here and mope like a goddamn child and I’m pretty sure that he would want you to continue living and do something with your life. Work harder on your flair, get a grip on what you want to do after college, go volunteer somewhere. Anything. Take all of this pent up bullshit that you’re dealing with right now and do something productive with it.”

The two of them stared at each other for a brief moment before Eren shook his head, let out a sigh and walked over to the couch to sit down. He opened the bag he was holding and started taking the food out. Levi walked over and sat on the other end of the couch, grabbing what was his and setting it on his lap. The two of them sat and ate quietly but when Eren was done with his sandwich he finally spoke up.

“I’ll do better with my flair. I’ll practice it more and pay better attention to what you’re saying to me when you’re trying to teach me,” he started. “I’m sorry I’ve been kind of shitty. To be honest, I’m surprised you’re even spending time with me, especially when I’ve been such a downer.”

“We all cope differently with loss,” Levi replied, making sure to meet Eren’s eyes. “I know that right now probably wasn’t the best time to let you know I’m interested, but I figured it might at least help you move on quicker.” He paused for a moment to ball up the wrapper from his sandwich and throw it in the bag it came in. He scooted closer to Eren and leaned in to give him a light kiss. “Besides, after that kiss at the bar that night, there was no way I was going to be able to keep resisting you.”

Eren gave Levi a smile and Levi pulled him down to lay his head on his lap. Eren wrapped an arm around Levi and nuzzled his nose into Levi’s stomach. It was a silly gesture but it made Levi’s heart flutter.

As he began to absentmindedly play with Eren’s hair he asked, “So what happened at Jean’s last night? You sounded like blondie upset you.”

“I don’t know, I guess I’m just upset that he’s been spending more time with Jean,” Eren said. “He’s supposed to be _my_ best friend and he should be helping _me_ deal with all this but instead he’s with Jean.”

Levi leaned his head back on the couch and listened to Eren’s selfish confession, but he chose not to give him a response just yet. He was curious what else Eren had to say about the situation before throwing out any advice or an opinion of his own.

“I mean I had a lot of fun hanging out with Connie and Sasha last night, but Armin and Jean just kept going off to do their own thing. And I know that he has a crush on Jean but now is hardly the time to start acting on that. If Jean reciprocates his feelings, it’s only because he’s using Armin as a fallback or a rebound.” Eren stated.

“I didn’t know you knew big words like ‘reciprocate’.” Levi joked.

“Shut up.” Eren tittered. “Are you even paying attention?”

“Of course,” Levi started, and bowed his head to look down at Eren. “You know it _is_ normal for even close friends to grow apart in adulthood, right?”

“Not me and Armin.”

“It’s ‘Armin and me’. And yes, even you two,” Levi said. “You said he wants to be a doctor and travel around, right?”

Eren nodded. “Yeah, it’s been his dream for a long time.”

“And did you really believe that you two would stay so close, knowing he would eventually be going away?” Levi asked, turning his attention toward the window and looking outside. It was a question people don’t like to answer or think about, and he knew this. But he also wasn’t one to sugar coat things or give people a false sense of security.

“Shouldn’t that mean we should stay close while we can?” Eren asked. Levi gave him a simple shrug and nothing more. The room fell silent again as Levi played with Eren’s hair, still looking out the window. He didn’t really know what to say to Eren about the whole issue and he felt silly for even listening to such immature talk, but he wanted to be there for Eren.

When the silence was finally broken it was Eren who spoke again.

“Do you still talk to old friends? Like friends you had when you were my age?”

Levi had a feeling the question would come up in this conversation but he wasn’t entirely prepared for it. He hoped that a small, simple answer would be enough for Eren so he told him, “No.”

“What happened with you guys then?”

_Of course a simple “no” wasn’t good enough._

“They’re gone.” That was all Levi was willing to say about the matter. It was a lot more complicated than that, of course, but he didn’t feel that Eren was probably ready to hear about his past just yet.

Eren let out a heavy sigh. “You never tell me about yourself.”

“There isn’t much to tell.” A lie, but if it will get Eren off his back about it then it was one he was willing to tell.

“Whatever.” Eren mumbled as he buried his face into Levi’s belly. Levi knew he should talk to Eren more about himself but part of him worried that what Eren learned about him would scare him off. He certainly wasn’t a saint and his past wasn’t anything worth bragging about. He was starting to think the least he could do was tell Eren about his parents or something. But as his thoughts started to sort out what he was willing to tell the boy, he started feeling Eren trailing kisses along his lower stomach, just above the hem of his pants.

“What are you doing?” Levi smirked.

“Kissing your tummy, dumbass.” Eren smiled before resuming his ministrations.

“Tummy, though? Really?” Levi chuckled.

“Mm,” Eren hummed. “I like your happy trail.” He commented before planting another kiss. “It’s really sexy.”

“You sure change your tune quick, kid.” Levi said, continuing to play with Eren’s hair as he watched the boy worship his stomach. He wasn’t about to complain about the attention and even though he knew he should stop Eren before the situation got out of control, he chose to let Eren continue with whatever he wanted for the time being.

Eren shifted his body and put some weight on his elbow as he lifted Levi’s shirt up a bit with his free hand, continuing to trail kisses up Levi’s torso. He was gentle and took the time to give each of Levi’s abs special attention and Levi couldn’t help but let out a few small, appreciative hums in response. Before long, he watched as Eren shifted again so that he was straddling Levi, meeting his lips and sliding his hands further up Levi’s shirt and resting them on his shoulders.

Eren broke the kiss shortly after and asked, “Can I… Can I take it off? Is that okay?”

Levi met Eren’s eyes with his own to find that, surprisingly, they weren’t glazed with lust. The look Eren wore was one Levi would describe as innocent curiosity. He’d seen Eren almost completely naked already but Eren has never seen anything more than Levi’s arms, and he figured that there was no harm in letting the boy see him without a shirt on at all, so he gave Eren a nod.

Eren gave him a few more kisses and finally pulled the article of clothing off. He ran his hands down Levi’s torso and admired the toned muscles and pale skin.

“You’re so…” He started, only to trail off. He continued to run his hands experimentally around Levi’s upper body, exploring his waist and his pectorals, moving up to Levi’s broad shoulders, but then something made Eren stop. “Levi… What’s…?”

Levi felt Eren run his thumb over the spot on his upper left shoulder, just beneath where it met with his collar bone.

“It’s a scar,” Levi said. But he knew that alone wouldn’t satisfy Eren’s curiosity, so he added the simple truth. “From a bullet.”

Eren furrowed his brows and continued to run his thumb over the scar. He looked lost as if he wasn’t sure what to say or do. Levi wasn’t entirely sure what to tell him either, but before he could try and explain anything, Eren leaned down and gave a gentle kiss to the scar and followed up with his question. “Why would someone shoot you?”

Levi wanted to save this talk for another day, he really did. But there was no way he was going to be able to lie to Eren and get away with it and he didn’t really want to lie in the first place. So he took a deep breath, ready to tell Eren at least a few minor details of his former life.

But before he could begin, his phone started to chime. He let out a sigh and pulled out his phone to check the text message.

**Erwin:** Are you free? I have some stuff I need you to look over.

**Erwin:** It’s important.

“Bastard. He always knows how to ruin a moment.” Levi mumbled to himself before setting his phone to the side.

“What’s up?” Eren asked, planting another kiss to Levi’s shoulder and resting his cheek against it, looking up to the man with adoring green eyes.

“Erwin needs me to drop by the bar.” Levi sighed before giving Eren a gentle kiss on the forehead.

He paused for a moment to look at Eren’s eyes and found himself being lured back in for another kiss, this time on the lips. They stayed that way for a few moments, just kissing each other gently, but it didn’t take long until the kisses became harder and more passionate and before Levi allowed himself any sense to stop, he started coaxing Eren’s mouth open with his tongue.

He wrapped his hand behind Eren’s back to pull his body closer and Eren responded with a pleasing moan as he began to kiss Levi with more fervor. Eren let his hands roam back up toward Levi’s shoulders and he snaked a hand behind Levi’s neck as the other hand found its way up to grip Levi’s hair. The action only urged Levi to keep going and he started grinding up against Eren, and Eren responded in kind. He used his grip on Levi’s hair to pull his head back to bare his neck and he started to plant wet kisses and soft suckles along Levi’s throat. Meanwhile, Levi let out a groan as he cupped his hands around Eren’s ass, guiding his motions to sync with Levi’s and rub their clothed lengths together.

“Oh, fuck, Levi… That feels good, oh my god.” Eren panted into Levi’s ear.

Levi was about to respond to Eren when his phone gave him a reminder that there were other things he needed to do right now, and he stopped their motions completely, letting out a huff.

“Levi…” Eren whined.

Levi picked up his phone to check it once more.

**Erwin:** Are you there?

Levi growled at his phone and typed in a response and hit send.

**Levi:** I’ll be there in ten, commander eyebrows. Calm down.

“He’s an impatient bastard sometimes.” Levi said, still trying to catch his breath.

Eren leaned in to start kissing Levi’s neck again and murmured into his skin, “Can we just have a little quickie before you go? Please?”

Levi gently shoved Eren off of him. “Our first time together isn’t going to be a fucking quickie you shit.”

“Well that’s not fair you got me all worked up.” Eren pouted. He was trying to be playful and Levi understood that but he wasn’t about to keep Erwin waiting. Not if he was going to blow up his phone with texts asking where he is and why he’s not there yet.

Keeping their game in mind, however, Levi decided to tease Eren for a minute. “You seem so eager to have my dick up your ass.” Eren’s face turned a deep shade of red and Levi couldn’t help but feel a sick sense of satisfaction at the mortified look in Eren’s eyes.

“I’m not,” Eren started defensively, looking away to avoid eye contact. “You’re the one who’s going to have a dick up his ass.”

“You’ve got to work on your comebacks, kid. They’re awful.” Levi said with a small smirk before grabbing his shirt off the cushion next to him and slipping it back on. He stood up and looked down to Eren who now had his hands cupped over his boner as he was looking in another direction. “Sorry about that.”

“S’fine.” Eren responded. He shifted uncomfortably for a moment before standing up. “I’m gonna get blue balls if I don’t take care of this so maybe you should just go now.”

Levi couldn’t help but let out a short laugh. He grabbed Eren’s wrist and gently pulled him in for a hug. He leaned up and whispered in Eren’s ear, “Make sure you’re thinking about how good it would feel to have my tight heat surrounding that nice cock of yours.”

Eren let out a groan and rested his head on Levi’s shoulder. “That’s not fair at all. You should go before I tie you up to the bed and make you stay.”

“Mm, that doesn’t sound so bad.” Levi smiled. He paused for a moment and pulled Eren away from him, meeting his eyes. “Look, I know you want to know more about me and I—”

“It’s fine, Levi.” Eren interrupted. “I want to know everything there is to know about you but… I don’t want you to talk to me about anything that you aren’t comfortable telling me just yet. I don’t know what kind of shit has happened to you in the past. But I won’t judge you for any of it, and it won’t scare me off.”

“Soon, okay?” Levi said, cupping Eren’s chin and pulling him in for a chaste kiss. “I’ll text you later. But while I’m busy maybe you should try to talk to your little blond friend and get some things out in the air. Might make you feel better.”

Eren looked off to the side and then back at Levi before replying, “I’ll think about it.”

“Don’t think about it, just do it.” Levi insisted.

“Sure.”

Levi moved up to give Eren another kiss before he finally turned to leave, but he paused at the door a moment and looked back. Eren looked at him with a confused stare and Levi sighed before finally saying, “My dad.”

“Huh?”

“I picked up flair from my dad. You asked me about it the night we met.”

Eren’s expression softened and he gave Levi a humble smile.

“Thanks, Levi.”

It was something Levi never felt was overly important, but judging by Eren’s reaction, it would be enough to hold him over until Levi was ready to spill out his past.  


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Babies getting into a fight. Eren gets himself drunk. More sexual frustration.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some of the things Eren says in the last third of the chapter are very grammatically awkward to read and I just want to note now that it's completely intentional.

“I wanted to ask you something.”

It took a few days for Eren to swallow his pride and ask Armin to come over so he could talk to him. But he trusted Levi’s wisdom and believed that if Levi told him to do something, it was probably the right thing to do.

Well, that and the fact that Levi wouldn’t stop bugging him with texts saying things like “have you talked to blondie yet?” and “quit being a damn chicken shit” and so on. The day before when Levi was doing a flair lesson with Eren he even went so far as to say that he refuses to kiss him or do anything related to kissing with him until Eren had this talk. It gave him enough motivation.

“What’s on your mind?” Armin asked as he shifted his weight in the couch, sitting on the opposite side of Eren.

Eren felt his stomach twisting and fluttering but he finally spat out what he needed to know.

“It’s just… I don’t feel like we’ve been as close lately. We used to hang out almost every day and play video games and we snuggled up together when we had a little too much to drink and… Did I do something? Is there a reason you don’t want to be around me?”

“Oh! No, you didn’t do anything Eren!” Armin responded without any hesitation. “I just thought you were spending all this time with Levi and I—”

“Armin, you know I’m not spending all of this time with Levi. He’s a busy guy.” Eren interrupted. “You can tell me what I did, you know. That way I can fix it.”

“It’s nothing you did, Eren.” Armin stated. “I’m just… I’m trying to be a good support for Jean—”

“Because you like him.”

“No, it’s not that at all! I mean, yeah, I like him but…” Armin trailed off, looking away from Eren and down to the floor.

“I’ve been hurting too, you know.” Eren sighed.

“But you have Levi.” Armin argued.

Eren felt himself get irritated at that comment as if that somehow excused Armin’s sudden distance from him over the last couple of weeks. It didn’t.

“I like Levi. I like him a lot. But he’s still not my best friend. He’s not been a source of moral and emotional support for me since I was just a little kid and he’s not the person that I’ve created thousands of unforgettable memories with.” He replied.

“If it was bothering you why didn’t you say something sooner?” Armin asked.  “What about Mikasa? Have you talked to her lately?”

“Yeah, she texts me every day but she’s not _here_.” Eren replied. “I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want to bother you.”

The room fell silent for a brief moment before Armin finally spoke up and said, “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Eren started. “I’m just kind of worried that you’re using this situation to get Jean to want—”

“Don’t finish that sentence.” Armin said warningly. Eren could tell that he struck a nerve. He didn’t see Armin look upset too often, but he knew him well enough to know that Armin had just become irritated. “Do you really think I’m that kind of person?”

Eren was never one to accuse Armin of anything. But he also knew that Armin was very smart, and that he could easily twist a situation to his advantage if he wanted to. And although Eren wanted to believe with all his heart that Armin wouldn’t use Marco’s death as a way to get closer to Jean and to get Jean to let him in, he also recalled that Armin has an uncanny ability to manipulate people if he wants to. His best friend always came off as a sweet and innocent guy, but Eren knew that Armin wasn’t really all that he appeared to be.

“No!” Eren shot back defensively. “Not at all! I just… I know that some people would take their window of opportunity, and—”

“And what?” Armin asked. “You think I’m trying to woo him right now? You think I’m going over there and whispering sweet nothings in his ear? Taking advantage of his emotional turmoil and using it to get him to want me?”

Eren felt his stomach hit the floor. He didn’t think anything he said should set Armin off like this, but he knew he said something wrong, and there wasn’t a way to take it back. Armin had very quickly become very upset.

“Of course I—”

“I’ll let you in on something.” Armin offered, standing up off the couch in order to be able to look down on his friend. Eren could feel the heat radiating from his stare. “Jean admitted he liked me a while ago. A couple weeks before the accident when we had gotten a little too drunk, he kissed me, even.”

Eren stared blankly at Armin, unable to believe what had just come out of his mouth.

“I still had enough sense to tell him to stop because he was with someone. And he did. Because Jean’s a good guy, and he was drunk and being stupid.”

“When did you guys even have enough private time to do that?” Eren asked.

“When you were getting chummy with Marco!” Eren had noticed that Armin’s voice was continuing to raise. Was it possible that Armin had been afraid of losing him as a friend to Marco just a few weeks ago, the same way Eren felt about losing him to Jean?

“Armin…”

“Every time we went over there, if we weren’t doing something as a group, you went off with Marco. You guys would lay on the floor next to each other and get all giggly and touchy with each other.” Armin said, trying to collect himself. “You’d wake up in the mornings before everyone else and have your little talks in the kitchen or out on the backyard swing. And you guys got so close to each other, Jean would get jealous. Even _I_ would get jealous.”

Eren gaped for a moment, confused, and then sputtered the only thing that could come to his mind. “You have a crush on me too?”

Armin instantly slapped his hand over his face and let out a very exasperated sigh before rebutting with, “No! No I don’t. I never have. I never will. You can be a real douchebag sometimes, you know that?”

“Armin.”

“I was jealous because I felt like _I_ was the one losing my best friend. So I don’t even want to hear it from you.” Armin stood there, his hands balled up into fists and shaking. He was angry. Real angry. And Eren couldn’t help feeling awful because he’s the reason Armin was feeling this way.

“Armin, I’m…”

“I’m leaving.” Armin stated boldly. He walked over to the door and Eren stood up in hopes that he’d be able to stop him. But Armin gave him a glare that left Eren staying in his spot. He opened the door and made his way out, but not without delivering one final blow. “I hope Levi thinks you have a small dick, because obviously you’ve absorbed most of it into your personality.”

And with a slam of the door, Armin was gone.

Eren plopped back down on the couch, looking down to the ground, feeling nothing but a swirling pit of emotion tearing up his insides. He didn’t think the talk would escalate like that at all, and now he felt even more certain that he was going to lose his best friend. But after all they’ve been through together, would Armin really toss him to the side like that?

He took out his phone and stared at Armin’s name on the contact list. He pushed on the name to open the contact menu, and he pushed on the text option. But he didn’t send a text. Instead he went back to the previous screen. His thumb shook over the call option, but he never let it press down. Armin wasn’t going to want to talk to him or hear anything he has to say right now.

So Eren did the only thing that came to mind right away. If he couldn’t talk to Armin, he’d have to talk to the next best person. So he scrolled down the contact list and clicked on that all-too-familiar name, and he typed.

**I think I fucked up.**

* * *

 

After hours of getting no response from his recipient, Eren decided that it was time to just numb the pain instead if he wasn’t going to be able to talk it out with someone. It was his night off after all, and Levi was working, so what better way than to go out and have a few drinks and just forget about shit.

He got into his truck and headed downtown. He parked in the back parking lot of Wings bar, but he stared at the building, and decided that going into Wings wouldn’t get him the results he wanted. Levi was working, and he’d definitely put a limit on how much Eren can drink. And Eren wasn’t here to get buzzed. He was here to get drunk, to forget. He was here to make an absolute ass of himself if he needed to as long as it would make the pain go away.

So Wall Maria it was.

Despite working right next door, he hadn’t been inside this building since the first night he saw Levi. He felt bad about it, because he always liked having his talks with Reiner. And he was curious if Annie had returned or not. Not to mention he never even got a chance to say hi to the other bartender he liked, Bertholdt, the last time he came in. When he glanced over at the bar, he was pleased to see that all three of them happened to be working tonight.

He walked up to the bar and sat in a seat toward the middle. Much to his pleasure, Annie was the one who happened to notice him first, and he gave her a cheeky smile as she made her way over.

“Howdy, stranger.” She said, straight-faced like Eren remembered her always being. But the tone in her voice easily told Eren she was pleased to see him.

“Hey. How have things been?” Eren asked.

“They’ve been okay I guess. What’ll it be tonight?” Annie replied.

“The usual. But can I get a double shot?” Eren requested.

“Coming right up.”

Eren watched as Annie grabbed a bottle and a large shot glass and filled it up before bringing it back to him. When she handed him his drink, Eren asked, “How’s your dad?” He boldly took down his shot, relishing in the sting he felt in his throat.

“He passed away.” Annie answered, her eyes softening a bit.

“Oh. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up—”

“It’s alright.” Annie cut Eren off. “He’s been sick for a long time. I went back home to visit him, and I knew it would probably be the last few weeks I’d get to spend with him. I owe Mike and Erwin a lot for allowing me to leave for so long.”

Eren had almost forgotten that Erwin also owned Wall Maria. He still hadn’t seen much of the man, but from what he could tell, he was a good person. But he was still curious about what kind of deal he made with Levi, or how they knew each other. Levi didn’t seem so eager to talk about it. But maybe it had nothing to do with Erwin and everything to do with Levi’s past which he also hesitated to talk to Eren about.

A man started calling for Annie from the other side of the bar and Eren figured that as her queue to leave. “You gonna be here a while?” She asked. Eren gave her a nod and she walked away to go to the other customer.

Eren continued to sit at the bar and desperately hoped someone else would come over. Luckily Reiner came to the rescue soon enough. He must’ve already noticed Eren sitting there because he already had a shot glass in hand that Eren was certain had the mixture for a Jäger Bomb.

“Jaeger! I haven’t seen you in ages!” He threw out his hand for a fist bump and Eren did the same. “What have you been up to, man?” He asked, setting the shot glass down for Eren.

Eren, wanting to keep the conversation simple, replied, “Just working mostly.”

“Yeah? Where are you working again? Wasn’t it that pizza place?” Reiner asked.

“Oh! No, I got fired there. I’m actually working next door now.” He took his shot.

“At Wings?” Reiner asked.

“Yeah, started about two months ago now.”

“Well how come you never drop by, man?” Reiner chuckled. “We miss having you around here.”

“I’ve just been busy. Levi’s trying to teach me flair.” Eren explained. It was partly the truth. Didn’t matter. Reiner wasn’t much more than an acquaintance so it wasn’t like Eren needed to tell him his whole life story. “Can I get a double shot of Bacardi?”

“Sure thing!” Reiner smiled.

He made Eren his drink and talked to him for a few more minutes. He asked Eren about how he managed to get the job at Wings and what got Levi to want to teach him flair and Eren explained he wasn’t really sure (although he definitely knew) and tried to turn the focus on Reiner. Reiner, not one to talk about himself much either, started talking about Annie and how well she’s been taking the passing of her father. And he told Eren that she and Bertholdt had started a relationship. Eren found himself feeling slightly jealous of Bertholdt but he also knew that the guy had a massive crush on Annie so he did his best to feel happy for him.

Why should he be jealous anyway? He had Levi, right?

Of course, Levi wouldn’t even call him his boyfriend. Eren still didn’t know what to make of that.

Some time passed, and Eren managed to down a few more shots. He knew what his limits were but he wanted to push them tonight. Even if it meant having to call a cab for the night, it didn’t bother him. He just wanted to forget what a shitty day he had. He talked to Annie some more and Bertholdt stopped by at one point, which Eren used the opportunity to congratulate him.

Eventually, even with the loud bar noise around him, he heard his phone ringing. He checked the caller I.D. and answered immediately.

“Mikasaaaa!” He chimed.

 _“Eren? Are you alright?”_ Mikasa asked on the other line.

“I am just perfect right now!” Eren replied, talking a little too loudly into the phone but not caring.

 _“… Are you drinking?”_ She asked. The concern in her voice was unmistakable.

“Yep!” Eren replied. “Youuu were taking too long to respond so I decided to just go out instead.”

 _“I was visiting mom and dad. What happened? How drunk are you?”_ Mikasa asked.

“Armin’s mad at me. But I don’t care. Whatever.”

 _“Eren, what happened?”_ Mikasa repeated.

“I doesn’t even matter anymore!” Eren raised his voice. “He’s going away next year anyway I don’t even care. Fuck it.”

_“Eren…”_

“Reiner! Can I get another shot!?” Eren called from across the bar. Reiner looked over to him and put up his index finger to indicate he’d be there with one in a minute.

 _“How much have you had to drink Eren? Do you have a ride home? Are you even with someone?”_ Mikasa’s voice was borderline frantic, and it was obvious she was struggling with the fact that she wasn’t there with him.

“I’ve had a few shots. They’ll get a cab. Or mayyybe I can…” He trailed off, his mind wandering to a place he promised himself it wouldn’t go. “I’m gonna let you go.” He heard Mikasa voice out a protest but couldn’t be bothered with it as he hit the end call button. She immediately called him back but he just hit ignore. Reiner came by with his drink.

“Last one, Eren. You’re starting to get obnoxious.” He told him as he handed him the alcohol.

“Aw, you’re no fun.” Eren teased before taking his shot. He was faded enough now that he couldn’t even feel the sting of the alcohol anymore and he personally knew that he had pushed his limit. Any more drinking and he would be at risk of blacking out eventually.

But then, maybe that’s what he wanted.

“Hey, man, I’m gonna go next door, alright?” He said as he handed Reiner some money. Reiner raised an eyebrow at him. “I’ll even go out the front so you know I’m not going to my truck, okay?”

“Alright,” Reiner sighed. “Just be careful.”

Eren looked at his phone after he stepped outside to see a text.

**Mikasa: You better not do anything fucking stupid.**

* * *

 

For a Thursday night, Levi felt like it was actually pretty busy. But he wasn’t complaining because that just made the time go faster and he really wanted to go over to Eren’s and give him a surprise visit tonight. He’d been thinking about the two of them a lot the last few days and while their relationship was still very, very young, he was considering giving in to what Eren really wants and allowing them to go all the way soon. He was pretty certain now that Eren’s interest in him was more than just a sexual one. _Maybe tonight can be the night_ , he thought.  

The thought was soon completely destroyed when he saw Eren walking – no, stumbling – into the basement bar with Petra by his side, keeping him upright.

Petra walked up with Eren to the edge of the bar wearing a nervous expression and said, “I’m sorry, Levi. He dropped in and I didn’t realize he’d already had some drinks next door so I gave him a few shots and he’s—”

She was soon muffled as Eren threw her arms around her, the height difference causing her face to be buried in his shoulder.

“Petraaaa! You’re soo prettyyyy and niiice!” Eren said, following up with a giggle. He started rubbing his cheek on the top of Petra’s head and Levi walked over and grabbed his arm to pull him away.

“Oi,” he started. “What are you doing?”

“Hi Levi!” Eren shouted, a little too loud for it to be comfortable, and threw his arms around him. Levi winced at the sudden raise in Eren’s voice and he couldn’t help but feel some secondhand embarrassment from the kid.

“He insisted on coming down here and saying hi.” Petra said. “My shift is over so I figured I could give him a…” She trailed off. “Um…”

It took Levi a second to figure out why Petra had suddenly looked so uncomfortable. But then he felt Eren starting to nibble on his ear and he realized that his hands had traveled down to his waste. He instantly shoved him away.

“Eren, stop.” He warned.

“Leviiiii” Eren whined, giving him a pouty lip as he moved to lean against the wall.

Levi turned his attention back to Petra. “Don’t worry about him. I’ll take care of it.”

Petra squinted her eyes slightly as she replied, “You sure that’s okay? The bar doesn’t even close for another hour. I don’t think it’s a good idea to have him hanging around here.”

“It’s fine.” Levi said as he saw Eren walking toward the counter out of the corner of his eye. “I don’t want to worry about you getting home safely and I haven’t seen him this drunk since the accident. It might be good to have someone take care of him.”

He noticed Eren leaning against the counter to talk to one of the customers. He knew Petra was talking to him but he elected to ignore her to listen to Eren. “Hey doll face. What’s it gonna be tonight? Sex on the beach or sex with—”

He was cut off immediately as Levi yanked his arm to pull him away.

“It’s fine, Petra. Go home.” He said as he continued to drag Eren to the back room. He pulled him in and shut the door behind him after releasing Eren’s arm. “What’s gotten into you? Why are you here, out drinking?”

Eren laughed for a few seconds before finally answering, “Arrrmin is… pffft… he got mad me so I… wanted to get drink and maybe we can sex— _weshouldhavesexrightnow_.” His eyes got instantly wider. Levi would take him up on the offer if Eren weren’t so blown right now. Instead, he just rolled his eyes.

“Great,” he started. “You’re a stupid _and_ a horny drunk.”

Eren moved in on him and put his hands around Levi’s waist. “Only because you... So fucking sexy and I – god dammit Levi.” He moved in for a sloppy kiss, and Levi indulged him for a few seconds before pushing him off.

“Let’s get you home.”

“Don’t wanna go home.” Eren stated matter-of-factly.

“You can’t stay here, Eren. You’re drunk.” Levi said, using his arm to keep a small distance between them so Eren wouldn’t move back in and tempt him.

“Your place.” Eren replied.

Levi hesitated for a moment, but decided it was pointless to fight Eren on this right now. He let out a sigh. “Fine.”

He left Hanji in charge of closing the bar for the night, who was more than happy to oblige. Getting Eren out of the bar ended up being more of a struggle than Levi expected. He kept trying to stop to talk to random customers and when he was moving he was a sloppy stumbling mess. Levi had to focus a lot of his attention on just keeping Eren upright, especially going up the stairs.

It took them a few more minutes but Levi finally managed to get Eren to sit inside of his car and he buckled the seat for him. He considered just taking Eren home since he would be too drunk to really pay attention but then, maybe it was time to give Eren a glimpse of his life. When he’s sober again in the morning, of course.

He drove, careful of how fast he went and how sharp he turned so Eren wouldn’t get an upset stomach. He reprimanded him for hitting on one of the customers and trying to use a pick up line on her but he was sure Eren wasn’t even listening. But still, he had to voice his displeasure. Eren just laughed in return and claimed he didn’t do anything like that, much to Levi’s annoyance.

When Levi finally got to his house, he pulled the car in the parking garage. Once he managed to get Eren out he took him immediately into the kitchen and filled up a glass of water.

“Here. You need to get some hydration.” He said as he handed Eren the cup.

Eren grabbed it and took a quick sip before setting it down on the counter. “This is a big house.”

“It’s home.” Levi shrugged.

“Ohhhhh that’s a huuuuuge fucking fish tank.” Eren said, pointing at the all-too-obvious giant fish tank standing between the dining area and living area. “I didn’t know you petted fish.”

“Yeah, I like to watch them.” Levi replied, trying not to laugh at Eren’s obviously-drunk comment. “Drink more water.”

Eren took another small sip and grabbed Levi’s wrist to guide him into the living area.

“What are you doing?” Levi asked once they came to a stop. Eren didn’t answer, but instead leaned down to start kissing him. His breath absolutely reeked of alcohol but at the moment it didn’t matter. Levi kissed back and allowed himself to be pushed down onto the couch, Eren quickly following and straddling himself on Levi’s lap.

“Levi, let’s fuck.” Eren whispered before moving down to give Levi’s neck attention. Levi lolled his head back and let out a breath, enjoying the sucking and biting sensations Eren was giving him.

But, unlike Eren, he still had his senses.

“Eren. You’re drunk.” He said as he gently shoved Eren away from his neck.

“So?” Eren replied, moving back in for another kiss and Levi didn’t bother to resist. They stayed like that, playing with each other’s tongues and biting lips, letting out small little moans and whimpers. Eren was quick to run his hands under Levi’s shirt and up his torso, and finally managing to clumsily pull Levi’s shirt over his head. Levi returned the favor and Eren moved back in to continue making out. Levi relished in the feeling of their bare chests making contact with each other for the first time and it drove him wild.

But once he felt Eren starting to grind up against his own throbbing erection, he pulled away and grabbed Eren’s hips, stilling his motions.

“You’re drunk. We’re not doing this.” He said, trying to catch his breath.

Eren gave him a smirk and rubbed against Levi’s crotch the best he could with Levi’s grip on him and replied, “You’re so hard, let’s do it.”

“I’m serious, Eren.”

“Why don’t you want to have sex me!?” Eren said loudly as he instantly switched into a look of frustration. “I quit the game like a day after we started and you still won’t do it.”

Well at least he sounded like the alcohol was starting to wear off anyway. He was slurring less.

“Because, Eren. You’re drunk. I don’t want us to have sex for the first time and you not even remember it.” Levi explained, getting frustrated himself.

Eren dropped his head onto Levi’s shoulder. “You always have an excuse,” he whined.

“I’m sorry,” Levi started. “I want to. I really do. But you’re too drunk.”

“Levi.” Eren said, a hint of urgency in his voice.

“Hm?”

“I’m gonna puke.”

“Oh, no you don’t!” Levi said as he pushed Eren up off of him and immediately started dragging him toward the bathroom. “Hold it ‘til we get to the bathroom.”

Eren managed to obey Levi’s order, but only just barely. The instant they walked into the bathroom Eren dropped to his knees and threw his head down into the toilet seat and started letting it all out. Levi stood behind him in the doorway, trying to stomach the sounds and not throw up himself – Eren was definitely loud when he got sick. When Levi thought Eren was done, the brunet let out a long whine before starting a second round with less vomit and more dry heaving and Levi couldn’t help but feel really bad for him.

He crouched down next to Eren and started to gently rub his back as Eren continued to let it all out.

Once Eren managed to catch a break and breathe, he told Levi, “I’m sorry.” He kept his face in the toilet and Levi assumed he probably wasn’t done just yet.

“It’s fine, Eren.” He continued to rub his back until Eren finally lifted his head out of the toilet.

“Do you have something I can blow my nose in?” Eren asked. Levi grabbed some toilet paper and handed it to him so he could blow into it.

“God that’s so disgusting…” Eren mumbled as he looked into the wad of toilet paper. Levi noticed how droopy his eyelids had gotten and could tell he was really tired.

He let out a sigh. “Do you think you’re done throwing up now?” Eren gave him a nod, so Levi gently grabbed his arm and pulled him up until they were both standing. “Then let’s get you some more water and get you into bed.”

Once he filled another glass of water he guided Eren into his bedroom. He figured Eren wouldn’t be comfortable wearing jeans to bed so he took them off for him – Eren was completely out of it at this point – and left him to sleep in his boxers for the night. He pulled his comforter over him and set the glass of water on the nightstand beside him.

“Levi?” Eren mumbled.

“Yeah?”

“Sleep with me?”

Levi smiled gently at him even though he knew Eren wouldn’t see. His eyes were already shut. “I’m just going to take care of a few things and take a quick shower and I’ll be in bed, okay?”

Eren let out a hum of acknowledgement and Levi could tell he fell into slumber right after.

_You damn idiot._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *coughsthelongawaitedsmutwillbeinthenextchaptercough*


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Breakfast, small talk and awkward sex.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long for the update guys. I'm horrendously self conscious about my smut-writing abilities!! lol 
> 
> But finally, the boys are gonna get that sexual tension out of the way! :D Yay!

Eren woke up in the morning to find Levi sleeping beside him on his stomach, head snuggled comfortably into his pillow with his arms wrapped around it. The comforter they were sharing covered most of his body, leaving only one of his legs hanging out. Remembering the first night they spent together sleeping in an actual bed, Eren had picked up on this quirk of Levi’s. He had tried to insist that Levi fix the comforter that morning and Levi simply stated that he just gets so hot, but doesn’t want to take the comforter completely off. So he’d stick his leg out instead.

Levi was snoring lightly, clearly still deep in sleep, which surprised Eren because Levi was usually an early riser. He stared and smiled endearingly at the older man for a few moments before turning his head in the direction of the nightstand to see that it was only eight o’clock in the morning. A picture frame caught his attention and he sat up to lean forward and get a closer look at it.

Levi was standing in the middle of it, wearing his usual casual clothes and crossing his arms. He wasn’t smiling – but when did he ever? He was surrounded by two people that Eren didn’t recognize. One was a man much taller than Levi, with very light brown hair. Deceptively light. It almost looked as though it could be white. The man was wearing a white button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up and he wasn’t exactly smiling, but it wasn’t a frown either. Just something in between. On the other side of Levi was a girl about the same height with red hair tied back into two short pigtails. She was wearing a white button-up shirt as well but adorned it with a brownish-green vest on top and a necklace. She had her arm thrown around Levi’s shoulder and Eren figured these people must be very close to Levi. He couldn’t help but smile at the picture.

He noticed there was also a note sitting on the nightstand and Eren picked it up to read.

_I’m sure you’re going to feel like ass in the morning_   
_so if you wake up before me go ahead and help_   
_yourself to some coffee. I have it set out on the_   
_counter for you._

_P.S. – Game Over_

Eren wasn’t entirely sure what Levi meant by “game over”, but his head was throbbing and he didn’t really want to think about it. He stood up and looked around for his clothes, but they were out of his sight. He didn’t really care much since he still had his boxers on.

He observed a door in the bedroom that led to the master bathroom and went to take care of his bladder before sneaking out of Levi’s room altogether. When he left the room he found himself in a very short hallway that led straight into the kitchen.

Once he was out of the hallway, he was astonished with the place in which he found himself. It was huge. There was a sliding door that led out to an enclosed patio to his left, and to his right was an open display of the house. The kitchen wasn’t too big, but it wasn’t small either. There was enough room for two or more bodies to maneuver around safely. Dividing the kitchen from the dining area was a breakfast bar where Levi had some stools sitting. The dining area was an open space with table sitting in the middle. It was big enough to place six chairs around the entire thing.

Eren wondered if Levi ever even had that many people over.

Dividing the dining area from the living room was a large fish tank with a fair amount of decorations inside. Eren vaguely remembered seeing this the night before, but was able to appreciate the aesthetic beauty of it now that he was sober.

The living room was nothing spectacular, a couch and a few chairs defined exactly where the living area started and ended. There was a fireplace in the corner and above it was a space designed to place a television. It wasn’t large, forty-two inches at best. Along the outside wall of the entire area was another set of sliding doors which led to an outside balcony. Eren took note of the swinging bench that was placed outside. He also observed a flight of stairs and another hallway that led to somewhere, but now wasn’t the time for exploring.

He spotted the bag of ground coffee beans laying on the counter in the kitchen and decided it was time to get himself some relief from his hangover. He prepped enough to make a full pot of coffee and pushed the button to let it start brewing. He looked around while he waited, taking in the decorative trinkets Levi had placed above the cabinets and read a few little reminders that Levi had posted on his refrigerator, ranging from when he needed to go to Eren’s for flair lessons to what groceries he needed to pick up.

Speaking of food, he was hungry. Surely Levi wouldn’t mind if he grabbed himself a bite to eat, right?

He opened the fridge to see what was inside. It was minimal. A few condiments, a half-gallon of milk, some juice and fruits and vegetables. Eren spotted a pack of bacon and a carton of eggs and after giving it a quick thought, decided he’d make some breakfast for the both of them. Surely Levi would be waking up soon anyway, right?

He looked around to find a pantry, which he found in the small hallway by the bedroom, and checked to see if Levi had any quick pancake mix, but he didn’t find any. Just some canned goods and snack food. Going back into the kitchen, he spotted a loaf of bread on the counter by the fridge and figured toast will just have to do.

Once he managed to find a couple of pans, he started cooking. His coffee had finished brewing and he took sips as he watched the bacon cook. He wasn’t sure exactly how Levi liked his eggs so he figured scrambled was going to be the best bet. Plus, if he was being honest with himself, he couldn’t really cook eggs any other way anyway.

Once the food was done and he started putting it on some plates, he heard Levi’s footsteps on the wood floor and looked over to see him walking into the kitchen area wearing nothing but his boxer-briefs. He was yawning and rubbing his eye with his palm. Eren stopped for a moment so he could take in the sight of the beautiful, almost-naked man standing before him. He definitely appreciated the view.

“I never said you could eat. Just some coffee.” He said with a straight face.

“Oh, I… I’m sorry I just thought–”

“I’m fucking with you, kid. What’s on the menu?” Levi interrupted.

“Oh, um, I just saw some bacon and eggs and figured a light breakfast would work.” He said as he walked over to the breakfast bar with the plates. “There’s toast too. I hope you don’t mind, I used the strawberry jam on it.” He added as he set the plates down.

Levi grabbed a couple of forks from a drawer and followed Eren to take a seat. “Well it is my jam, idiot.” He replied. He started eating his breakfast and Eren followed suit.

“Not bad.” Levi said. Eren had never cooked for Levi before and he had to admit even though it was just simple breakfast food he definitely wanted Levi’s approval.

“Thanks.”

“So tell me what the hell happened yesterday. One minute I’m serving customers, having a perfectly normal night. And the next minute Petra’s practically carrying you into the basement bar, apologizing for getting you completely shitfaced and insisting on making sure you got home.” Levi said.

Eren let out a heavy sigh. “I had Armin come over so I could talk to him and it was going just fine for a minute, but then I kind of told him I thought maybe he was trying to use the situation to get Jean to turn to him.”

“I see.”

“Yeah, so he kind of blew up. I mean, he got really defensive. I don’t think I’ve seen Armin get so angry, so quickly.” Eren continued.

“Usually defensiveness is a sign of guilt.” Levi commented.

“I don’t know, Levi. I know Armin well and even if I might suspect it, I don’t think he’d actually do something like that.” Eren replied.

“Well, maybe he got mad that someone so close to him would accuse him of doing something that’s so unlike him.”

Eren took a few bites of his breakfast and let that sink in for a couple minutes. It was probably true. Eren shouldn’t have accused him like that. He was just surprised the conversation escalated so quickly, and that Armin actually got so mad. That almost seemed uncharacteristic of him.

“Give him a couple days to cool down. Then try to talk to him again. Next time without being an asshat.” Levi advised.

“Sure,” Eren replied. “By the way, what’s up with this house? It’s a pretty big house for a single old man to have. And I haven’t even seen the whole thing yet.”

“I’m not old you little shit.” Levi replied. “But if you have to know, it was an inheritance.” He added before taking a sip of his coffee.

“Oh?” Eren couldn’t help but be curious. It was as good a time as any to try and pry into Levi’s past, now that he was finally in Levi’s home.

Levi must have seen the curious expression on Eren’s face, so he continued.

“My mom had this house built shortly after I moved out. I was twenty, I think. Our old was house getting worn down and she always wanted to have her dream house and my folks had enough money saved up that it was finally possible, so here it is.” He explained.

“Why such a big house?” Eren asked.

“Why not?” Levi chuckled in response. He picked at the food on his plate and continued. “Actually, she was hoping I’d be giving her a lot of grandkids and wanted to have a nice house for them to play in when they came and visited.” He wore a soft smile on his face, but it almost looked bitter. “She never knew that I’m gay.”

Eren knew that Levi using the past-tense to speak of his mother meant she was probably no longer alive. So, with a quiet tone, he asked, “How’d she die?”

“Cancer,” Levi answered. “My father left her shortly after the house was finished. She didn’t know where he ran off to and neither did I. She had to find herself a job, which took a while, but when she did it was a nice office job that paid okay. She was surprised she nailed a decent job after having been out of work for so long. But, it gave her health benefits which she had needed for a while after my dad left. She was starting to show signs.”

“What did your dad do before he left?” Eren asked.

Levi tittered bitterly, “Bartending, of course.”

He brought his attention to Eren, and the boy could see him searching his expression. Eren wondered what was going through Levi’s mind. If he was thinking about how much he’s willing to tell, or how to tell it. But it didn’t take long before Levi stood up from his stool and grabbed Eren’s hand, prompting him to follow.

“Let’s get dressed and go for a walk.”

Eren followed Levi to the bedroom but not without pointing out, “Wait, you didn’t finish telling me about your mom.”

“I’ll finish when we go on a walk.” Levi replied, dragging Eren behind him. They made their way into the bedroom but Levi didn’t stop there. Eren found himself following Levi into the bathroom and when they got in there Levi grabbed an unopened toothbrush from the medicine cabinet. “Here. We just ate, not to mention you threw up last night. Brush your teeth.”

“Uh,” Eren started as he looked at Levi with some confusion. “You sure you want me to use that?”

“It hasn’t even been opened. I bought it a few days ago because mine’s going to need to be replaced soon but I can just go get another one. This can be yours when you stay over.” Levi insisted.

“Sure.” Eren replied, grabbing the toothbrush and doing as Levi asked. They both stood in front of the mirror brushing their teeth like some old married couple who did everything side-by-side. Eren had to admit it warmed his heart a little. Not to mention Levi had just implied that Eren will be staying over more often from here on out.

After finishing and rinsing his mouth out he followed Levi back out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. And it didn’t take long before he found Levi pressing him up against a wall and attacking his mouth with Levi’s own. He let him, kissing back but allowing Levi to take control as he was in a bit of a haze. He wrapped his hands around Levi’s waste to pull him in so he could feel the skin-on-skin contact and he let out a whimper.

Levi pulled away from his mouth and began to trace kisses along his jawline and down to his neck. Eren turned his head to the side to allow Levi access and he felt the man nipping at sucking at his skin in a way that was sure to leave marks.

“I assume you read the note I left you this morning.” He said as he traced his hands down Eren’s sides, making their way further so he could grope the brunet’s ass.

Eren nodded. “Is this what game over meant?”

“I decided to forfeit.” Levi said before moving down to start tracing kisses over Eren’s collarbone.

Eren hummed in response to the attention, then commented, “I thought I told you last night I already quit the game a while ago.”

Levi bit down on Eren’s collarbone, causing the younger man to let out a small hiss. “I don’t care. I planned on being the one to lose right from the beginning.”

“What?”

“Just go with it.” Levi said as he started trailing kisses down Eren’s torso. Eren watched as he got onto his knees, giving his lower stomach the attention while he played with the hem of Eren’s boxers.

Eren placed a hand on Levi’s head and ran his fingers through Levi’s hair. “You don’t strike me as the submissive type.”

“Mn,” Levi hummed as he traced kisses along Eren’s clothed erection. “When I’m in the mood.” He tugged at the band of Eren’s boxers and added, “Tell me what you want me to do, Eren.”

Eren was a little thrown off guard, but he looked down at Levi with lust-blown eyes, licked his lips and said, “Keep going.”

“You’re going to have to do better than that if you want the boxers to come off.” Levi replied, still teasing Eren through the cloth.

“Mm… Suck my dick.” Eren whimpered, tightening his grip on Levi’s hair. “Please, suck my dick.”

He had to admit, telling his own boss what to do was kind of exciting in its own way.

“Better.” Levi smirked as he slowly pulled down the boxers in order to let Eren’s cock spring free from its confinement. He watched as Levi eyed his length hungrily and wrapped his hand around the base. He suddenly felt a wave of self-consciousness as he remembered Armin’s last comment to him before he stormed out of his apartment, but it was quickly dispelled when Levi commented, “Big boy.”

Eren suppressed a moan at the comment but quickly felt it escape from his throat as he watched Levi trace his tongue up from the base to the tip. He teased the head of Eren’s cock by swirling his tongue around and lapping up the bead of pre cum at the tip before taking him into his mouth completely.

“Shit…” Eren breathed as he lolled his head back. It took every ounce of self-control he had not to buck his hips as Levi started to rhythmically bob his head around his length. But that self-control started to wane when he looked down to find Levi staring straight up at him, his cheeks hollowing and filling as he started to take Eren in even deeper. Levi moaned when they locked eyes. The vibration around Eren’s cock felt amazing and Eren couldn’t help but push Levi’s head down until his lips were at the base. He could feel himself at the back of Levi’s throat and it was almost enough to send him over the edge, so he tugged the raven’s hair lightly to indicate he wanted him to pull off.

“It’s too good. You’re too good, I can’t.” Eren said.

Levi kissed the tip of Eren’s dick and stood back up. He teased Eren by moving in just a few centimeters from his lips and, in a sultry tone, told him, “If you don’t want to hold back, why don’t you take me over to that bed and show me what you can do?”

That was all the encouragement that Eren needed. He found himself instantly lunging at Levi, locking their lips together and hoisting him up in one fluid motion. Levi wrapped his legs around Eren’s waist, moaning into his mouth when Eren gave his ass a firm squeeze. Eren wasn’t even sure when he had started to move, but he quickly found himself fumbling onto the bed with Levi beneath him.

Which would have been sexy if they hadn’t clanked their teeth together.

“Ow! Shit, I’m sorry!” Eren apologized, instantly sitting up and worrying that he just completely ruined the moment. He covered his mouth and his cheeks, all the way to his ears, were burning bright red, and for the second time since he met him, he heard Levi laugh. Genuinely laugh.

“You’re such a clumsy shit.” Levi replied. “I can’t believe I’m teaching you how to juggle glass bottles.”

“I’m sorry…”

“Why are you apologizing?” Levi giggled. “I think it’s cute.” He beckoned a finger and Eren moved to hover back over him. Still feeling embarrassed, however, Eren didn’t do anything else and just froze in place instead.

“I just… haven’t done this in a while.” He said nervously.

Levi pulled him in and gave him a few gentle kisses on the mouth, a few on his cheeks and a couple on his forehead. “I don’t expect you to be perfect at this. Nobody is. Besides…” He moved his hand down and started stroking Eren’s length. “I haven’t done this in a while either. And I imagine both of us will be feeling pretty good soon, anyway. Don’t worry about it.”

Eren let out an appreciative hum as he felt himself hardening up again. He moved back in to start kissing and nipping at Levi’s neck, moving his hand down to palm at Levi’s groin. Levi gave Eren a cute little whimper at the contact. Annoyed that Levi’s underwear was still on, Eren traced kisses down Levi’s toned abs as he slid the underwear down.

“You’re so fucking perfect.” He commented as he looked over Levi’s entire naked body.

“Mm…” Levi hummed, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. “I have some lube and condoms in the nightstand drawer.” He said, indicating to Eren that he was ready to take the next step.

Eren pulled pushed himself off the bed and opened the nightstand drawer to find exactly what he was looking for. Levi shuffled his underwear all the way off and shimmied his way up the bed so his head was resting on the pillows. Eren took out the bottle of lube and a condom and placed it on the bed. He bit his lip when he saw Levi languidly stroking himself while he waited.

Levi must’ve noticed Eren’s lustful stare because Eren suddenly heard him saying, “You like watching me touch myself?”

“Yeah…” Eren breathed, nodding his head. If he were being honest, he could just stand there and watch Levi and it’d be enough to get him off. But, he’d have to save something like that for another day. He’d been waiting for this moment since he first met Levi and he wasn’t about to hold back for anything. He reached down to pick up the condom and was about to open it when Levi let out a noise, telling him to stop.

“You are _not_ about to just stick it in without prepping me first.” He said.

Eren furrowed his brows, confused. He suddenly felt really dumb because he should know how this works, but honestly, Levi was the first guy he was even attracted to, and he’s never had anal sex before.

“Don’t I just… lube you up and stick it in?” He asked, feeling even dumber when the question came out of his mouth.

“Ah. I almost forgot I’m the one who awakened the gay in you.” Levi replied, smirking. “You’re about to stick that beautiful, well-endowed dick into my ass. If this were something that I’ve been doing on a regular basis lately, we might be able to pull off ‘lubing me up and sticking it in.’ But it’s been a while and I need to be stretched. I want you to be rough with me but I also want to be able to take a shit later without my ass being shot to hell and torn up.”

“Sorry.” Eren replied.

“Don’t be sorry, just get some lube on your fingers and start finger fucking me.”

“Is that a little impatience I’m hearing?” Eren teased as he popped open the cap on the bottle and started squeezing lube onto his fingers.

“I’m fucking horny and I want your cock inside of me.” Levi replied, making it a point to eye Eren’s junk. Eren’s dick twitched at the thought of finally getting to fuck him. He just had to get passed this one last hurdle and he’d be able to tear Levi apart at the seams. Just thinking about making Levi feel good was enough for Eren to swallow down his embarrassment and get straight to business.

He kneeled in between Levi’s legs and rubbed his lube-slicked finger around the muscle, teasing Levi for a minute before pressing it in. Levi winced when Eren inserted his finger but quickly let out an assuring sigh, letting Eren know it was okay to keep going. Eren continued, sliding his finger in and out a few times and circling it around the inside. He knew about the prostate but wasn’t really sure how to go about finding it. He looked up to Levi’s face which was slightly flushed red as he looked back down toward Eren.

“You can put another finger in, you know.” He said. Eren noticed that Levi’s breathing was a little more irregular than normal, which was encouraging. He slid in a second finger and started scissoring and curling his fingers, trying to find that bundle of nerves he knew would make Levi feel good.

And he must’ve found it, because Levi tightened up and let out a low groan and said, “Yeah, right there. Keep rubbing that spot.” Eren smirked as he kept massaging Levi’s prostate, watching as he started to clutch the comforter beneath him.

“Does it feel good, Levi? You like it when I finger fuck you?” Eren asked. Honestly, he wasn’t sure where the words even came from. He was horrible at dirty talk and he knew it, but something about watching Levi writhing and squirming from his touch gave him a sudden boost of confidence.

“Ah, fuck Eren.” Levi replied, tilting his head back. “It feels so good… But your cock would feel so much better.”

Eren took that as his cue, so he pulled his fingers out. He reached over and grabbed the condom and tore the wrapper open. “You want me to use more lube?” He asked while he rolled the condom on. Levi gave him a nod and Eren grabbed the bottle and dropped some more lube on over the condom. He stroked himself to spread the lube around a bit. He lifted Levi’s legs up so they were resting on his shoulders and aligned himself with Levi’s hole.

“I swear to God, Eren, if you don’t fuck me hard – AH!” Levi gasped as Eren pressed his dick inside. Eren eased his way until he was completely surrounded by the tight heat and looked up to Levi to make sure he was alright. “Keep going.” Levi said.

Eren gave him a cheeky grin.

“You’re going to have to do better than that if you want me to fuck you.”

“Get that smug look off your face.” Levi replied.

Eren gyrated his hips slightly to tease Levi. “Come on… Tell me what you want me to do.”

“Fuck Eren! Just fuck me. Fuck me hard. So hard I can feel you for days.” Levi demanded, moving his own hips, trying to urge the brunet on.

He didn’t have to tell Eren twice. He pulled out, leaving only the head still inside, and thrust back in. Levi let out a pleased moan and Eren continued to pull in and out, setting a steady pace. He grabbed onto Levi’s waist for purchase and started to thrust in harder, his breathing becoming ragged and sweat starting to pool on his forehead.

“Shit, Levi. You’re so tight.” He groaned.

Levi threw his hand behind Eren’s head and pulled him in for a hard kiss, muffling his moans and cries as Eren continued to move. He adjusted his hips and allowed Eren to thrust in at a different angle and he threw his head back. Eren listened to Levi moan and curse and call out his name over and over as he repeatedly assaulted his prostate. Levi’s cries of “faster” and “harder” only urging Eren to ruthlessly thrust into him.

“Fuck, Eren. Shit, it’s so good. I’m so close!” He whined. Eren was close to the edge himself. The noises Levi was making were absolutely sinful and erotic and unlike anything he’d ever heard before. He’d listen to those noises forever if he could. But he knew all good things came to an end, and he was about to come soon himself.

“Touch yourself.” Eren panted. “I want to watch you touch yourself, Levi. I want to see you jack off while I’m fucking your ass.”

Levi instantly flew his hand over his dick, stroking quickly as he was being brought even closer to the edge. “God, Eren. You feel so fucking good. I’m going to cum. I’m—”

His words were cut off as strings of pearly white fluid shot all over his stomach. Watching Levi go over the edge was all Eren need to reach his own climax and he gave a few more desperate, erratic thrusts as he rode through his orgasm.

Once they were both spent, Eren pulled out and moved up to lay down next to Levi, both panting and sweaty and feeling absolutely euphoric. They looked at each other, gazing in each other’s eyes while they continued to try and catch their breath. Eventually, Eren couldn’t help but let out a light chuckle.

“Wow.” He said. “I really thought our first time would be the other way around.”

Levi gave him a small smile. “Yeah, I guess I’m not too out about the fact that I like to bottom.”

“I think it’s really sexy.” Eren replied. “It’s unexpected. And you looked so good. God…”

“Don’t think I’m never going to fuck your ass though.” Levi said. “I’m looking forward to claiming that little virgin ass of yours.”

“Just go easy on me when you do.” Eren chuckled.

They sat in silence for a few moments before Levi finally said, “You might want to take that condom off… Gross.”

Eren sat up and looked down at the messy condom still wrapped around his softened dick. “Heh, yeah.”

Levi sat up next to him and gave him a few kisses on the shoulder. “Come on. Let’s go take a shower and go on that walk.”

Eren was more than happy to oblige.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fun times in the shower. Levi and Eren go on a walk. Eren learns more about Levi's past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't intend to put smut in here but then I started writing and I was like, yes. So... Enjoy the shower smut?
> 
> Also I apologize for the late update. I've been very sidetracked an occupied the last few weeks and haven't had the right motivation to work on this fic. But I got some inspiration finally so here you go. :)  
> Sorry if the chapter seems a little short.

Eren and Levi promised to keep their composure while they took a shower together. But their self-restraint was limited. Eren was behind Levi, lathering his body up with body wash while he traced kisses along Levi’s neck and shoulders. Levi didn’t fight against the attention and listened as Eren told him how beautiful he was and how much he loved the glisten on his skin from the water. How sexy he looked with his wet hair slicked back.

Eren could already feel himself getting hard again and he pressed his erection to Levi’s back as he wrapped his arms around the shorter man.

“You horny little shit.” Levi commented, although he didn’t protest against Eren’s movements.

“I can’t help it. I’ve got this perfectly sculpted mysterious man in front of me, naked and vulnerable.” Eren murmured into Levi’s ears, allowing his hand to trace downward and brush over Levi’s dick. Eren wasn’t the only one turned on right now. “Mm, you’re not one to talk anyway.”

“Because you’re all over me like a damn horny teenager.” Levi replied, taking Eren’s hand in his own and guiding him to wrap his fingers around his cock. “Ah…” He gave a pleasant, low groan.

Eren nibbled on Levi’s earlobe as he started to slowly pump him, Levi shallowly thrusting into Eren’s hand. His movements caused his back to lightly brush against Eren’s erection, teasing it very lightly. “Shit,” Eren breathed. “I want to fuck you again.”

Levi shook his head. “I’m already starting to feel sore. Unless you want to go the other way around.”

“Um…” Eren started.

“That’s what I thought.” Levi cut him off before he could speak. He pulled Eren’s hand away from his dick and turned around to face the brunet. He pulled Eren in by the waste and Eren watched as Levi pressed their cocks together, wrapping his hand around both. It was an odd sensation but it felt good, and the fact that his dick was touching Levi’s excited Eren. Luckily their height difference wasn’t so extreme that they couldn’t do this. “Will that satisfy you?” Levi asked as he slowly started to move his hand.

“Mhm…” Eren whimpered. He lowered his head, touching his cheek against Levi’s hair and allowed Levi to continue stroking their shafts together. He couldn’t help but start to gently thrust up into the movements, and he allowed his hands to move down to cup Levi’s ass. He tried not to be loud – he wasn’t sure why, there was no one else there – but he couldn’t help but let out a few small moans here and there, whispering and moaning Levi’s name into his ear.

Levi wasn’t being entirely quiet either. His breathing had become heavy and he let out a few explicit words here and there. He’d increase the speed and lower the speed, depending on how tired his hand was feeling.

Eren started to kiss along Levi’s neck, up his jawline, and finally met Levi’s lips. When Levi returned his kiss, Eren lifted the man up and ungracefully pressed him up against the shower wall. The new position gave them a better angle to work with. Eren kept him pinned to the wall and Levi jerked his hand faster around their lengths.

“Ahh… God, Levi. I love the way your cock feels against mine…” Eren moaned out, mindlessly thrusting up into Levi’s movements. He was close. So goddamn close.

Levi lolled his head back, still working his hand fast. “Shit, Eren… Keep talking to me like that. I love hearing that filthy language coming from your mouth.”

Yeah, Levi definitely had a kink for dirty talk. This was something Eren would have to make sure he practiced. But he’d try to now, because Levi asked him to.

“What did it feel like to have my cock inside of you? Was it good?” Eren wasn’t sure if that counted as dirty talk, but Levi tightened his grip slightly, so it must have been effective.

“Fuck, Eren. It was so good. I love feeling you tear me open.” Levi replied in between breathy moans. Eren had to admit, it just made him even hornier knowing his words were having an effect on Levi. So he continued.

“Yeah? You love the way it feels when I’m ramming my dick into your ass?” He asked, lowering his tone down, trying to sound sexier for his lover.

“Mhm… God… Keep talking… Fuck…” Levi was panting as he started to stroke even faster, desperate to make them both come.

“You want me to be even rougher next time? You want me to spank you? Pull on your hair? Wrap my hand around your throat?” Eren continued to ask between breathy moans.

“Ah, fuck Eren!” Levi cried. “Fuck I want you to do all of that. I want you to be so rough with me, I…. Shit, Eren… Ah… I’m gonna come… I’m…” His stroking was becoming erratic and Eren knew Levi had reached his limit.

“I want you to come, Levi. Ah… Come for me. Come all over me.” Eren was nearing his own climax. It felt so good to have Levi’s hand around him, their dicks touching each other… It was amazing and he just couldn’t hold it in any longer, and when Levi finally came, crying Eren’s name, he came with him, their cum making a mess in the space between them. It was washed away quickly enough thanks to the running water, but the two of them stayed in place, panting and staring into each other’s eyes, trying to catch their breath.

Levi rested his head on Eren’s shoulder and let out a soft chuckle. “Hah… I think we’re going to have a lot of fun, Eren.”

Eren knew he was talking about their newly developed sex life, but he knew they were going to have a lot of fun even outside of that. He had become so comfortable around Levi since he started working around the bar and this newly opened door into a world of intimacy was only going to make it that much better. Eren was already starting to feel so much closer to Levi.

* * *

 

When they were dried off and dressed, Levi and Eren left the house and started walking down the gravel road. Eren grabbed Levi’s hand and intertwined their fingers, their arms swaying back and forth between them. It was a beautiful day. Partly cloudy skies, a nice, cool breeze and beautiful warm weather.

“This looks like a farming area.” Eren commented.

“My mom came from a farming family. She didn’t continue farming, my dad wasn’t interested in it, but this area was once covered in crops. My mom’s family used to have livestock too. She would tell me stories about playing with the pigs and goats and all kinds of animals when she was a child.” Levi replied. He pointed toward a small pond that was on the land on the other side of the road. “She says the cows used to love sitting in that pond on really hot days. They were her favorite, I guess. She always got sad when they sent them off to the slaughterhouse.” Levi talked about his mom so lovingly, and Eren couldn’t help but smile about it.

“So… If your mom came from a farming family, where’d all the money come from?” Eren asked. From his understanding, farmers generally didn’t have a lot of money to spare unless a summer was giving them particularly good crops. The area they lived in wasn’t known for the best weather. Some years were way too dry and other years there was flooding.

Levi chuckled. “I come from a long line of penny pinching minimalists.”

“Meaning…” Eren nudged.

“My mom, my grandparents, great grandparents… They all hoarded their money. They didn’t buy things that they didn’t think they needed, and stored the money in their savings instead.” Levi explained. “I didn’t have television when I grew up, my clothes came from a thrift shop… They were cheap. I didn’t have much. I mostly had to use my imagination when I was a kid.”

“That must have sucked…” Eren replied.

Levi shrugged. “I didn’t know any different.”

They were drawing closer to another house on the road. It was a stereotypical farmhouse, run down, abandoned. Eren felt a little uneasy looking at it. It just had a really eerie vibe to it. But something about it seemed vaguely familiar. But it was hard to tell, it was still so far away.

“She met my dad at a bar. They dated, ‘fell in love’, got married. Then I came along.” Levi continued to talk. “My dad was pretty distant and their relationship got a little more strained as I was growing up, but my mom insisted they were still in love and close. My dad claimed that teaching me something like flair would be reasonable bonding time, but I think he was just trying to mold me into being the same person as him. He was good at it. Real talented. If he’s still alive out there, I imagine it’d be safe to stay he’s still so much better at it than I am.”

Eren had a hard time believing that was possible. But then, Levi was the only person he’d seen doing flair – at least in person anyway.

“Anyway, eventually they built the new house. I was already moved out by then. Working at a convenience store and living in a really bad, rundown apartment. School wasn’t my forte so I didn’t bother going on to college. I just lived day by day. Eventually, one day my father disappeared and my mom was pretty broken up about it. I had to come home and visit her a lot, and it only became more frequent when she found out she had cancer. It got to a point where I was worried about being too far from her, so I moved back home. I ended up losing my job because I just couldn’t make it to my shift every day. She went through numerous chemotherapy sessions and she got so sick. I had no choice but to take care of her.”

“I’m sorry,” Eren said. “That sounds awful.” He had never experienced anything like that and was unsure of what to say. But he didn’t want to make it seem like he didn’t care either. “So did you just live off of the money she had saved or did you get another job?”

Levi sighed. It was exasperated and drawn out. He didn’t seem to want to talk about it. “A story for another day. But… to summarize, I did a lot of pretty shady shit for a while so I could get some money. My friends helped me out with it, which worked out for everyone. They got money, I got money, and I didn’t have to worry about losing my source of income. But it brought along its own trouble. After my mom died I could have stopped engaging in that lifestyle, but I was making a lot of money, and it was addictive in its own way… I just… didn’t realize how far things would go.”

Levi’s expression turned into a somber one. Eren knew he was probably recalling some painful memories, but he wasn’t going to pry if Levi didn’t want to talk about it yet. He wondered if it had anything to do with the bullet wound under his shoulder. He figured Levi would talk about it when he was ready, but he _was_ curious… “The friends you’re talking about… Are they the people who are in that picture with you? The one on your nightstand?” He asked.

Levi raised a corner of his mouth in a half smile. “Farlan and Isabel.” He answered. “It’s a shame you can’t meet them. They were really… something. Best friends I could have ever asked for…”

The way he was talking about them made it all too obvious to Eren. They were dead. The friends he had mentioned before who were no longer around. They had died. It hurt Eren’s heart to think about it. He wondered what happened. How far did things really go? What has Levi been through? How bad did it hurt? He couldn’t imagine how he would feel if Mikasa and Armin died…

Before Eren knew it, Levi had stopped walking, and they were in front of that creepy house Eren spotted a few minutes ago. And suddenly he realized why it seemed familiar to him.

“Levi… Is this the house you took me to the other night?” He asked.

Levi nodded. “Welcome to my house.” He said.

Eren had to admit he was slightly confused. Why did Levi take him here the other night? Why didn’t he just take him home after they left? Seemed kind of… weird. “Why didn’t you tell me this when we were out here a few nights ago?” He asked.

“Because I didn’t need to. Wasn’t ready to.” Levi explained bluntly. “It’s where I go to think, to reflect. Lots of good memories in there… A lot of bad memories… Pretty much the origin of everything. I was even born in this house.”

Eren stayed quiet. He really didn’t know what he was supposed to say, or if he was supposed to say anything at all. Maybe it was time to change the topic.

“So…” He started, drawing out the “o”. “Since it’s ‘Levi History Day’, you mind telling me how you went from being some shady character to running a bar?”

“If you were trying to be funny, you failed miserably.” Levi said, tugging gently at his hand to start walking back in the direction of Levi’s house.

“Like your sense of humor has everyone rolling on the floor all the time.” Eren teased.

“Fuck off.” Levi smiled. They continued walking for a moment in silence and then he started up again. “I was pretty messed up for a while. I used to go the bar that Erwin runs in Stohess called Wall Sina.”

“Why does he name all of his bars Wall-Something-Or-Another?” Eren asked, genuinely curious.

Levi shrugged. “Fuck if I know. I’ve never asked. Never cared. But… I used to go there a lot and I’d get pretty hammered. Erwin and I started to get acquainted with each other. I don’t know what I talked to him about half the time but I learned that he has a wife named Mary – She’s beautiful by the way. He’s really lucky. And there were a lot of nights that he ended up giving me a ride back home because I just couldn’t handle myself anymore. Some nights I just didn’t give a fuck and I’d go behind the bar counter and show off my flair skills, which were horrendously rusty at the time, but apparently were good enough to impress him. He offered to hire me, I said no. I didn’t care at the time. I just wanted to drink all the time. Numb the pain.

“One night a few people who I consider enemies showed up there, and things got really out of control and fucked up. The cops were called, we broke a lot of stuff, a few people got hurt… It was a mess. I ended up in jail with a decent fee over my head. I had to use a fair chunk of my savings to get out of that one. Erwin… He’s a bastard. He threatened to press charges against me for the damage done to his bar. That would have pretty much fucked me over out of any of the money I had left. But instead he offered to let me work for him to pay off what I owe. My checks would be half of what they should be for the hours I work, blah blah…

“He asked me to show off my flair. I didn’t really want to, I resented flair a lot because of my father. But since it would help me pay off my debt sooner, I agreed. I ended up becoming a pretty big cash cow for him. It was enough to pay for the damages. He offered to let me go. Told me I didn’t need to work there anymore. But he told me it’s a shame I don’t use my talent.”

“So you kept working for him then?” Eren asked after listening to Levi’s story very carefully, trying to take in every detail.

Levi shook his head. “I hate working under other people. I joked with him and said if he wanted to give me my own bar I would consider it. He didn’t take it as a joke though. I don’t know why he was so interested in my abilities or why he was interested in me at all, honestly. My record has a lot of shit on it, there’s no way I’d be able to lease a building and start a business, so Erwin offered to provide that for me and let me run the bar however I wanted to and, well… that’s how Wings was born. It actually originated in Stohess a few years ago but Erwin learned that bar traffic was much better in Trost sometime after he opened up Wall Maria. So… Eventually Wings bar moved over there when the building next to Wall Maria became available.”

They finally approached Levi’s house and they stopped at the porch. “I think that’s enough for ‘Levi History Day’.” Levi joked. Eren figured he was probably over talking about himself, so he silently agreed to leave well enough alone for the day. He’d actually learned a lot about the man, and he was grateful that Levi was so willing to open up to him finally.

“So… What do you want to do now?” Eren asked, wondering if Levi had anything else planned.

“We have to be at work in a few hours.” Levi stated. “I hope you have some 80’s attire for theme night tonight.”

Crap, that was right. They were starting theme nights and the 80’s theme got elected as their first one. Eren had completely forgotten.

“Fuck.” He blurted out.

Levi leaned up and gave Eren a chaste kiss on the lips. “I know I can always count on you to remember the important shit.” He joked. “We still have a few hours, let’s go buy you something. Maybe some sexy leather pants.”

“Um… I don’t think so.” Eren wasn’t sure he wanted to let everyone at the bar see the exact shape of his ass.

“You know, if I’m all hot and bothered all night because of how sexy you look, we might go for a round two tonight…” Levi teased. How could Eren say no to that?

“Yeah, alright. Whatever you want me to wear, Levi.”


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren needs a lesson in 80's media. Turns out Eren and Levi's relationship isn't so subtle. 80's night turns out to be a hit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First off, I'm sorry that I've been taking so long to update this. I really have no good excuse. Writer's block and just laziness are pretty much all I can come up with lol
> 
> I'm going to try and map out the rest of this fic so I can work on it a little more smoothly and hopefully get to the end. I'm hoping that this fic won't go beyond much more than 25 chapters, although my goal is 25. 
> 
> I plan on posting a playlist onto 8tracks that can be accompanied with this chapter, including the song Levi uses for his routine. I'll add it to the description once I do. :)
> 
> Also, I got fanart of Eren!! ^_^ Check it out here: (http://sulkingmoon.tumblr.com/post/90768496589/inspired-by-the-bartender-fanfiction-by) Thank you so much Kuro!!

19 missed calls.

Eren turned on his phone, and apparently Mikasa was _not_ happy because she had called him _19 times_. Not to mention the barrage of texts that had also accumulated.

**Mikasa: Answer my calls.**  
 **Mikasa: I’m worried sick about you, Eren, pick up your phone!**  
 **Mikasa: Where are you?**  
 **Mikasa: Do I need to start coming up there to babysit you whenever you get upset about something!?**

“Fuck, I should call her…” Eren mumbled as he plopped into Levi’s passenger seat.

“I didn’t even hear your phone go off last night.” Levi commented.

“That’s because it was shut off.” Eren said as he hit the dial button and held the phone up to his ear. Levi proceeded to back out of the parking lot and drive while Eren talked on the phone.

It only took two rings before the line was picked up.

“ _Eren Jaeger! Where are you!? Why didn’t you answer any of my calls last night!? What are you thinking!?_ ”

Oh yeah, Mikasa was _pissed_.

“Calm down, Mikasa!” Eren said, irritation already settled into his voice. “I’m with Levi. Everything is fine.”

“ _Do you have any idea how worried I was last night? You’re always reckless when you drink._ ” Mikasa replied. Eren could admit he felt a little guilty. She worried about him a lot since he moved away, and surely talking to her while he was drunk last night did nothing to calm her nerves.

“I’m sorry. But it’s fine. I walked over to Wings and Levi took me home and took care of me—”

“ _I don’t trust him with you, Eren. He can’t even tell you when you’ve had enough. It’s thanks to him you even got in that—_ ”

“Mikasa, stop! Don’t even talk about that. Just don’t.” Eren interrupted. The tone in his voice was stern, warning. The last thing he needed was to be reminded of something he was finally starting to feel confident he could move on from. The phone was silent for a moment.

Mikasa finally let out a sigh on the other end. “ _I’m just worried about you, okay? Can you tell me what’s going on with you and Armin?_ ”

Eren’s heart sank. That’s right. He needed to face Armin again eventually. That fight was his fault too. And it was his fault that Mikasa was worried. A lot of things were his fault. “I don’t know what’s going on with me and Armin. We got in a fight because I’m an idiot. I was upset so I went out last night. I didn’t mean to worry you. I’m sorry.”

“ _Do I need to come up there and knock your heads together?_ ” Mikasa asked. Her voice had completely calmed down by now.

Eren sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “No, it’s fine. I can handle it.”

“ _If you say so,_ ” Mikasa replied. “ _Just don’t be stupid. I worry about you when I’m not around to pull your head out of your ass._ ”

“I know Mikasa. Everything is fine. But I have to let you go so I can get some things for work tonight.” Eren replied, letting go of his irritation. He heard Mikasa sigh on the other end of the phone.

“ _Alright. Make sure to get a hold of me later, okay?_ ”

“No problem.”

Levi chuckled as Eren hung up the phone. “She doesn’t like me, does she?” He smiled, resting his hand on Eren’s thigh. Eren placed his hand over Levi’s and rubbed his thumb over it a few times before Levi wiggled his fingers in between Eren’s.

Eren let out a sigh. “She’s always been a bit protective of me. It’s not really that she doesn’t like other people, but it takes a while for her to warm up. I haven’t told her we have a thing going on, but she’s pretty smart. She’s probably caught on if Armin hasn’t already told her.” Honestly, that worried Eren more. She didn’t approve much of Eren’s girlfriend in high school. But then again, looking back, Mikasa was actually right about her. Thinking back to that, maybe it was best to listen to her. She only ever looked out for Eren’s own good after all.

But looking over to Levi, who has shown a lot of care and concern for Eren over the last couple of months, he couldn’t believe that Levi would end up being bad for him. He raised Levi’s hands up to his lips and gave it a couple gentle kisses. He heard Levi let out a breathy chuckle and pressed one more kiss to his hand.

“You don’t have to be a sentimental little shit just because your sister doesn’t like me, you know.”

Eren smiled against his hand. “I’m being sentimental because I like you. Like… a lot. And I want to ravage and spoil you.”

Levi smirked and gently pushed Eren’s head away from his hand. “Idiot. You’re the college kid, I’m in my thirties. I’m supposed to spoil you.”

Eren smiled and looked out the window. “Age is just a number. And she’ll warm up to you. I’m sure she’ll find some time to come up here and breathe down my neck for a few days to make sure I’m not being reckless. That’ll be as good a time as any for her to get to know you.”

Levi squeezed his hand. “You make her sound like a nag.”

“She can be,” Eren started as he turned to face Levi again. Levi kept his eyes on the road but he gave Eren a hum to let him know he was listening. “I used to really hate it when we were younger. She was always on my back about something or another. My parents took her in when we were pretty young and she kind of developed a brother complex. She didn’t really let other people in for a long time. When her parents died it was a pretty harsh blow, as I’m sure you can imagine. We’re about the same age so she clung to me for comfort. But she’s grown out of it, and when I look back, I know a lot of the things she did and said was just to try and protect me from getting myself hurt. So a little nagging here and there doesn’t really bother me anymore.” Ready to change the topic, he asked, “So where are we going anyway?”

“Well, we only have a couple hours to figure something out for you before we have to be at work,” Levi started. “What kind of look are you aiming for?”

Eren shrugged. “I don’t know. Eighties.”

“Yeah, that was real descriptive.” Levi deadpanned. “I mean are you going for more of a Marty McFly look or eighties hair band?” He briefly glanced over to Eren. “Personally, I’d rather see you in the tight leather pants and the crazy eighties hair.” He smirked.

“Who’s Marty McFly?” Eren asked.

Luckily, they happened to be approaching a red light, because Levi didn’t hesitate to hit the brakes of the car. He stopped and turned to Eren, eyes wide and an all too serious look on his face. “You have got to be fucking kidding me.”

Eren stared at Levi with a blank expression on his face. No. No, he wasn’t kidding at all. He had no idea who the fuck Marty McFly was. He gave Levi a simple shrug and shook his head.

“ _Back to the Future_?” Levi asked.

Still not ringing any bells.

“No, this is completely unacceptable.” Levi said as he buried his face in his hands. Eren had to admit, he had no idea what the problem was. “You’re coming back over tonight, and I don’t care if we’re up until dawn. You and I are going to marathon all three movies. How in the ever loving fuck do you not know _Back to the Future_?”

Again, Eren just shook his head. The light turned green and Levi started to move the car forward again.

“I’m not the biggest movie buff.”

“Yeah, but you haven’t even seen _Back to the Future_? I don’t even understand how that happens to someone. It’s one of the most well-known trilogies in movie history.”

Eren just shook his head and smiled as he turned his attention out the window. “Whatever you say.”

They didn’t drive for much longer until Eren noticed Levi was pulling up to a costume shop. Eren thought it looked kind of shabby, but Trost was just a small college city so he wasn’t sure what else he could have expected. They both got out of the car and made their way inside. The walls were dark, fluorescent lights lit up the large area and the store was divided in sections; clothes, wigs, accessories, and so on. Eren imagined a place like this would be booming with business around Halloween.

“Well since you obviously lack in the eighties films department, I say we just go for an eighties hair band look. That cool with you?” Levi asked as he guided Eren over to the clothing section of the store.

“That’s fine,” Eren replied. “What are you going as?”

“The King.”

Again, Eren was completely lost. Who was “The King” supposed to be?

Apparently Levi noticed the dumb look on his face because he let out a loud sigh. “The king of pop.”

“Which is…?” Confusion was still all over the brunet’s face.

Levi quirked an eyebrow. “Really? Michael Jackson, kid.”

“Oh.” Well now Eren just felt stupid. He should have known that. His mom listened to Michael Jackson a lot when he was growing up.

“Anyway,” Levi began as he started looking through some pants on the clothes rack. “I’m thinking more of a Mötley Crüe look for you, though. You know who—”

“Why don’t you give me a lesson on eighties media later and let’s just focus on getting what I need.” Eren interrupted.

Levi smirked. “Calm down, I’m just giving you shit.” He pulled out a pair of leather pants with some silver buttons that went down either side of the legs. Eren wrinkled his nose at them, not sure if it was something he’d want to be caught dead in. But he had to remember that eighties fashion was a little bizarre, and everyone else who was working tonight would probably look equally ridiculous.

They continued through the store looking at more pants, shirts, wigs and so on. They went through a montage of Eren going into the fitting room and coming out in various outfits. Levi always had something smart to say about each one ranging from suggestive teases to words that weren’t so flattering. Ultimately they squared in on a black and red tank top with a few intentional rips and plain black leather pants. The wig they picked out was brown – close to Eren’s shade – and was true to the eighties rocker mullet. For shoes, Levi threw at Eren a pair of knee-high platform boots with heels, much to Eren’s dismay.

“I can’t walk in these.” He said as he wrinkled his nose at them.

“Sure you can,” Levi replied. “Hair bands walked all over stages in boots like those doing all kinds of crazy shit. You can wear them for a few hours tonight.”

Eren knew he’d end up taking them off anyway. Like fuck he was going to wear those for eight hours.

* * *

“Alright just sit still a bit while I figure out how I want to do this.”

Eren was sitting at one of the tables in the bar’s basement while Petra was setting up a makeup kit. He crossed his arms over one of the tears on his shirt and chewed on his lip as he looked toward the door. He looked back over to Petra when he heard her clearing her throat. She was all ready for the night. On her head she was wearing a platinum colored wig that was very true to the popular perm style of the eighties. She had on thick eyeliner, dark, smokey eye shadow and hot red lipstick. She was wearing a plain white t-shirt and an unbuttoned leather vest over it. On her legs she donned a tight pair of leather pants that, Eren had to admit, made her ass look phenomenal.

Did he have a crush on Petra? Maybe. But nothing that would override how he feels about Levi.

“Try to stay still while I get this makeup on. Levi says we’re going for a Mötley Crüe look, right?” Petra asked with a sweet smile on her face.

“Uh, yeah I guess.”

“They’re one of my favorite eighties bands actually.” She chimed as she grabbed for the foundation.

“Wait, you’re not going to cake my face are you?” Eren asked. He knew next to nothing about makeup. Last thing he wanted was to end up looking like a girl.

“It’s just foundation. It’s the base for everything else. Don’t worry you’ll be fine. We’re just going to go with this, some eyeliner and eye shadow and, if I remember correctly, they put stripes on their cheeks sometimes.” She said as she brushed her fingers over her own cheeks. “We’ll go with that just to amp up the feel of your costume.”

Eye shadow? He really was going to look like a girl…

Petra started applying the foundation and Eren did his best to sit still. It was a little awkward and he wasn’t sure if he should be talking or what.

“So you and Levi seem like you’re getting pretty close.” Petra smiled. “It’s nice to see him trying to connect with someone. He’s always so closed off.”

Eren squinted his eyes shut when Petra’s hands got close to them. “Uh, yeah. I mean… It’s just him teaching me flair and sometimes we catch lunch together…” A half-truth. Levi had asked him to be quiet about things and he wanted to respect that.

Petra chuckled. “I don’t think you guys realize how obvious you are.”

“Huh?”

“I mean, I didn’t think Levi played for the other team. I didn’t really think you did either.” She tittered as she snapped the foundation shut and picked up the eyeliner. “But honestly last night pretty much gave it away. Although I had my suspicions.”

Eren’s stomach dropped. What the hell did he even do the night before? “I don’t even remember most of last night.”

Petra reached for Eren’s eye to try and get the eyeliner on. It took everything in Eren’s power not to clamp his eyelids shut, but he trusted Petra knew what she was doing and managed to will his eyelids to stay open. “I don’t imagine you do. You were hammered.” She commented. “You were all over Levi though. Wrapping your arms around him and nibbling on his ear.”

“Oh god…” Eren breathed out nervously.

Petra ruffled her hand through Eren’s hair and giggled. “Well don’t worry about it. No one cares, Eren.”

“Yeah but Levi kind of wants to keep it under wraps. He doesn’t even want to call me his boyfriend yet…” Eren said, pouting just a little at his own reminder. “And I think he’s worried that Erwin will get pissed if he finds out.”

“Oh, honey…” Petra started. “I don’t think Erwin would care. I’ve known him long enough and he’s pretty relaxed about things.”

Okay, now Eren was confused. And Petra must have noticed because she took a deep breath before continuing.

“I met Levi when I was still a bartender at Wall Sina. He was a mess. He came in for the sole purpose of getting absolutely trashed and occasionally he’d blurt out what was bothering him but most of the time he’d just turn into this angry, grumbling downer.”

“What kinds of things did he say? Like, what was bothering him?”

“I think that those are things for Levi to tell you and not me.”

Eren gave Petra a pouty lip, but he understood. “Yeah, you’re right.” He agreed.

“Erwin can be pretty strict about how he runs his bars, but he’s always been a softy when it comes to Levi. There’s plenty of things he should have banned Levi from our bar for, but he didn’t.” Petra explained as she started working on Eren’s eye shadow. She picked a dark gray, similar to the eye shadow she was wearing. “He saw something in him, which is the only reason Levi hasn’t completely wasted himself into some homeless guy with no money. He almost blew his entire inheritance before Erwin finally gave him…” She trailed off. “Er… Oops, sorry. That wasn’t my place to—”

“Petra, it’s fine. He’s already talked to me somewhat about that.” Eren assured her. She was a gossip queen and he knew it. Honestly, it’d be easy to pry anything out of her if he talked to her just right but he wanted to respect Levi’s privacy. If there were things he didn’t want to tell Eren about yet, then Eren didn’t need to know.

It was funny to Eren, because he was never like that with anyone he’s dated before. Recalling his girlfriend from high school, he went nuts when he didn’t know what her plans were or what her past was like or anything like that. But with Levi it just didn’t bother Eren that he didn’t know everything about him.

It was probably a good thing.

“So why do you think he doesn’t want Erwin to find out?” He asked.

Petra shrugged her shoulders before dipping her fingers into something and smearing a couple of streaks on Eren’s cheeks. She leaned back into her chair as she looked over her work, a proud expression on her face. “I’m not so sure it’s Erwin he’s worried about. I just think he’s not sure about committing to the idea of being in a relationship with someone and he’s finding an excuse. But, I don’t completely understand how that brain of his works, so take that with a grain of salt.”

“One night we were talking, he sounded like his last relationship wasn’t the greatest.” Eren stated. Not that Levi got into detail about that at all, but Eren knew it was the reason Levi wanted to make sure their relationship would be more than just sex.

Petra hummed. “Well yeah… I heard his ex is the person who killed his two friends.”

“What!?”

Petra instantly slapped her hand over her mouth. “I’m sorry… crap… I’m sorry, Eren. Oh, my big mouth…”

“It’s fine.” Eren assured her, still wearing a shocked expression on his face. “He just… Is that person the reason why he has a bullet wound above his heart, too?”

“I’m not going to talk about it anymore, Eren.” Petra replied. She messed up and Eren knew it. Something like that was up to Levi to talk to Eren about, not her. And it was unfair of him to try and pry more of the truth out of her. “Please don’t say anything to him.”

“I said it was fine, Petra. I’ve been respecting there are things he doesn’t want to tell me, and I’ll leave it up to him to say something.” Eren replied.

Not that Eren didn’t want some answers now, but he knew that prying would only hurt their relationship.

Still, he had to wonder exactly what kind of shady business Levi used to do, and who his ex was and why someone like that ever got close to him.

* * *

It was nine o’clock. Eren had been tending the bar for a few hours now with a lot of compliments on his costume. Levi was nowhere to be found all night and Eren took that to his advantage. He didn’t wear the boots, but instead slipped on an old pair of chucks. They were so much more comfortable and honestly, the boots made him too tall to be comfortable anyway.

He was starting to get more comfortable with his flair skills and would occasionally toss a bottle while he was mixing a drink for a customer. But he still wasn’t sure he was ready for a full-on show the way Levi did it.

“Hanji, do you know where Levi is?” Eren asked. Hanji was dressed up as some person called Doc Brown. She had informed Eren that he is also from the _Back to the Future_ trilogy that Levi was going to make him watch tonight. Her reaction to Eren being unfamiliar with it was similar to Levi’s, albeit more exaggerated. Hanji was good at playing things up. Apparently she was very active in drama when she was in high school. It was believable.

“He doesn’t want to be seen until he does his routine.” She smiled at Eren as she was wiping down the counter. “Did he tell you what he dressed up as? We’re all in the dark.”

“Well, if he didn’t tell you I’m sure it’s intended to be a surprise.” Eren smiled. He reached into his pocket to pull his phone out, sending Levi a text asking him where he was. Out of curiosity of course, not that he was trying to keep tabs or anything.

He wiped down the side of the bar that he was primarily working on and when he heard a familiar voice he looked up, his gut dropping.

“Hey…”

No one could mistake those big, blue eyes and that unique color of blond.

“Hey.” Eren replied, giving Armin a meek smile.

“You busy? Can you take a quick break?” Armin asked.

Hanji was nearby and must have heard. “Take all the time you need, Eren. I can handle this.” She smiled.

Eren was nervous. They’ve fought before, and this wasn’t even anything major compared to some of them but he wasn’t sure if Armin was here to make up or for something else. Eren knew he had a few things that belonged to Armin in his apartment. Maybe he owed Armin some money still. Maybe it was something about Mikasa…

“Sorry I was such an ass yesterday.” Eren said after they stepped outside. The words came out before he could even think about it.  

“No, I was defensive.” Armin replied without any hesitation. “You were just trying to make sure I wasn’t doing anything stupid.”

“No.” Eren said. “I mean… Yeah, I don’t want you to do something stupid but I was being an ass and I was accusing you of something terrible. I’m sorry. You really don’t need to be apologizing to me.”

“I told you I hoped Levi thought you had a small dick.” Armin chuckled lightly.

Eren laughed. Levi definitely didn’t have any complaints about Eren’s dick. “We all say shit when we’re pissed.” He reasoned, still smiling at his friend. He thought about adding that he and Levi finally went all the way, but maybe now wasn’t really the time for that. “Seriously, don’t worry about it.”

He pulled Armin in by his arm and squeezed him into a tight hug.

“I’m still sorry.” Armin said. The two of them pulled away from the hug and Armin took the time to study Eren’s costume. “You look pretty, uh…”

“I look bizarre. Shit, you should see the high heeled platform boots Levi was trying to get me to wear!” Eren laughed.

Armin laughed with him and responded, “But you really do look the part. I could see you being the lead of an eighties hair band. Although I’m not sure that a rocker mullet suits you. But the headband is a nice touch.”

“Says the nerd who cut his hair in a bob until junior year of high school.” Eren teased, punching Armin lightly on the arm.

Armin shook that head and smiled. “We don’t speak of that anymore.”

Eren ruffled his hair. “I better get back inside and get to work. You and Jean got anything going on tomorrow night?”

“Just the same as usual.”

“Can I join?”

“Of course.”

* * *

About thirty minutes later, it was time for Levi to make his appearance. Eren was anxious. He’d been wanting to see Levi all night and was curious how well he was pulling off the Michael Jackson look. He had texted Eren to let him know he was only over at Wall Maria hanging out with Erwin in one of the backrooms of the building.

When the song that was playing had ended (it was “Animal” by Def Leppard), the music faded out and the lights had dimmed, courtesy of Hanji, and the room fell silent. The sound of an artificial door creaked, accompanied by footsteps and howling, before the song finally hit. Eren recognized it all too well, and he couldn’t help but smile wide as he saw Levi walking – no, strutting – into the room, clicking his fingers as he threw his arm down with every beat.

He definitely nailed the Michael Jackson look. The wig was perfectly crafted, curly just like Michael’s hair was, he had the sequin glove and jacket, and he donned the vintage 20’s fedora hat that Michael was well known for wearing. His black pants were neatly pressed and his shoes were freshly polished.

Eren had already prepared what Levi needed ahead of time so this would go smoothly. Levi mouthed along to the lyrics as he grabbed the first two bottles that he was going to work with. He flipped them both up into the air and caught them without a problem before setting them back on the counter. He grabbed two mixing cups, placing them to either side of the bottles and started going to work. He started juggling the bottles and one cup up into the air. He spun around, catching one of the bottles behind him and the mixing cup in front of him. He caught the second bottle inside of the mixing cup.

Somehow he managed to tie in his throws to work along with the Thriller dance. Although it wasn’t completely perfect _because_ Levi was juggling bottles, Levi definitely stayed true to the routine. Eren could hear cheering and yelling all around him. The crowd was absolutely pumped.

And of course, Levi never missed an opportunity to give Eren a look when he was moving a particular way. He especially had no issue locking eyes with Eren as he flawlessly juggled his bottles while doing the moonwalk across the floor. From where Eren was standing, he could see all of Levi, but the crowd on the other side of the bar weren’t so lucky. But that was no half-assed moonwalk.

Eren couldn’t help but feel all the more attracted to Levi. He knew the guy could do flair well, but he was a good dancer too, and Eren had never expected that.

Levi was really just full of surprises.

Eren continued to watch, his mouth stuck in a toothy grin. He was just as excited as the customers were. Hanji even let out a few loud “woos!” to cheer Levi’s routine on. He continued to find ways to tie in the Thriller dance into his routine as he skillfully threw the bottles and cups, mixing the alcohol up and filling the smaller shot glasses with the liquid. He’d manage to snap his fingers here and there, moonwalked some more, and made it a point to fit in a few pelvic thrusts (which Eren knew were meant to get him all worked up). Eren noticed that even Armin and Jean had left their post at the DJ stand to come watch the routine, smiling and clapping their hands along with the beat and cheering Levi on with the rest of the crowd.

It was the liveliest the bar had been in weeks.

Theme nights were definitely a good call, Eren had to admit.

 _Two for you, Marco_. He thought as he smiled impossibly wider.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is pretty much just a mini chapter to finish up the rest of Eren and Levi's night. Next chapter should be longer and more eventful.

It really wasn’t part of the plan for the night. After all, they’d only officially broke through the sexual tension that morning.

But then again, there was quite a bit of time to make up for.

Even still, Eren never imagined that the first time he’d find himself on his knees with Levi’s cock stuffed in his mouth would be in the back storage room of Wings bar wearing eighties costumes during the middle of his shift.

Sure, Levi managed to make a Michael Jackson costume look extremely sexy. And sure, the way he was able to dance and move the way he did while still being able to do a spectacular flair show was quite impressive. And sure… Levi definitely gave Eren a knowing look when he finished his routine, and Eren handed out the usual free shots a lot quicker than he normally did on other nights.

It was really supposed to be innocent. Eren had pulled Levi into the back room. His intentions were simply to tell Levi that he did an amazing job and give him a few quick little kisses. But then a few quick kisses turned into longer, more sensual ones. Levi’s hands had somehow ended up behind Eren’s neck, pulling him in deeper. Eren’s hands managed to make their way to Levi’s ass (which looked amazing in the leather pants he was wearing). And Eren’s not sure how, but eventually they ended up behind the cabinet, and Eren had practically slammed Levi into the wall, pinning him there, moaning into his mouth, biting and sucking on his lips, palming the growing bulge in the older man’s pants.

And he insisted on giving Levi a nice reward for such an outstanding performance.

Eren had never given a blowjob before, so he wasn’t entirely sure if everything he was doing was right. But it didn’t take long to gain confidence in what he was doing. If Levi’s long _ohs_ and _ahs_ and _oh fuck yeahs_ were anything to go off of, Eren would say he was doing a pretty good job. He wasn’t brave enough to let Levi in too deep yet, so instead he tried to make up for that by utilizing his tongue, twirling it around the head when he pulled out, licking up Levi’s shaft when he needed to stop and rest his jaw for a moment, moaning around that delicious flesh when he _did_ let it in as far as he was willing to go.

Eren knew that Levi was nearing his climax when the raven man started gripping and tugging hard at Eren’s wig.

“Fuck… God… Fuck, Eren. I’m gonna-Ahh—!!”

Eren wasn’t sure how to describe Levi’s cum. Bitter would be the closest description he could come up with. Bitter and warm. The thought about what was going into his mouth and down his throat would normally have repulsed Eren but because it was Levi, he wasn’t bothered at all. In fact, he found it incredibly sexy. He looked up to see Levi’s face while he rode out his orgasm in Eren’s mouth. His cheeks were flushed, his eyes partially covered by hooded eyelids, mouth open and panting. Levi met Eren’s gaze and bit his lip, a smirk finding its way across his mouth.

“Swallowed on your first blowjob? Not bad…” He chuckled.

Oh, Eren had a surprise for him. Yeah, he swallowed some, but not all.

He stood up, a smile on his face. He leaned down to reach the shorter man’s lips. He wrapped a hand around Levi’s face, coaxing Levi’s mouth open, allowing Eren access to let the remainder of Levi’s cum fall into the man’s own mouth. Levi accepted it, taking a moment to swallow it before giving Eren a few sweet kisses to his lips.

“Well, I knew you were perverted but I didn’t think you were _that_ perverted.” Levi teased.

“Mm, you still have a lot to learn about me.” Eren smiled before leaning in to give Levi another kiss. Their moment had become short lived, however…

“Hey, Levi—Woah!”

Hanji had walked around the corner to find Eren and Levi in their compromising position, Levi’s softened dick still hanging out of his pants and Eren’s wig falling off of his head. She instantly slapped her hand over her eyes and started laughing.

“Naughty boys!” She exclaimed with a big grin on her face.

Eren was quick to fix the state of his wig but he was surprised at how casually Levi just slipped his dick back into his pants as if this was nothing new for him.

“What is it, four-eyes?” He asked, pulling her hand away from her face.  

“Nothing, everyone was just wondering where the two of you wandered off to.” Hanji smiled. “Didn’t think you guys would be getting it on in a place like this.”

Eren blushed. He blushed hard. Like, really hard. He wanted to crawl into a hole and die from embarrassment. Maybe he could shrink down to the size of an ant so someone would crush him. Or he could evaporate into thin air and disappear.

“If you don’t need something, please leave. You’re making Eren embarrassed.” Levi replied, agitation in his voice.

“Don’t be embarrassed, Eren! Levi’s a fine piece of ass! You should be—”

“Let’s go, Hanji!” Levi cut her off as he started to shove her in the direction of the door. She argued with him as they made their way across the room and Levi mentioned something to her about showing a little respect for people’s privacy before Eren heard the door close shut once again.

Eren sighed, slumping his shoulders, before turning the corner around the cabinet to find that Levi had also left the room. He wasn’t sure if he was glad for the short moment to himself or upset that Levi just left him hanging there but he didn’t think about it much before heading out of the room himself.

When he left the room, Levi was behind the counter already back at tending to the customers. Eren was a little amazed at how quickly Levi was able to snap back into work mode.

“There’s a couple at the end of the bar who haven’t been taken care of yet.” Levi said as he turned to face Eren.

“Uh… Sure.” Eren said with a nod. He didn’t know what he was expecting. It’s not like Levi was going to talk about anything or make it obvious the two of them had just been intimate with each other in the other room. But he couldn’t help but feel his stomach sink at the fact that Levi was able to act like nothing had just happened. But then again, that’s just how Levi was. Eren has stolen many kisses from Levi at the bar only to have him turn around and act like Eren was nothing more to him than his employee.

The night continued like normal. Eren took care of customers as Levi went back and forth between checking on how things were going upstairs and downstairs, occasionally showing off his more basic flair moves for a few extra tips. The idea struck Eren’s mind on more than on occasion to try and show off some of his flair as well, but then he remembered his first night at the bar and how Auruo had fumbled up, breaking the entire bottle as a result. That would be embarrassing.

He served the usual regulars, Christa and Ymir making their usual appearance. Armin hopped by the bar a few times to talk to Eren, discussing the possibility of Eren going over to Jean’s the next night. Eren agreed to, figuring he’s been spending too much time with Levi anyway. He was just glad to know that Armin didn’t hate him, and that things were going to be okay between them. He was also starting to miss Connie and Sasha and their shenanigans.

Two o’clock came soon enough, and the bar didn’t take long to clear up. Hanji, Petra and Auruo all said their goodbyes before heading out, and Armin and Jean had announced their leave as well, leaving the bar with no one but Eren and Levi inside.

Eren was finishing up cleaning shot glasses while Levi made sure everything was placed back on the shelf in an orderly manner. It was quiet, and neither of them seemed to have anything to say. But it was comfortable silence, much to Eren’s surprise.

But finally, Levi spoke up.

“You want to try and practice flair in a bar setting?”

“Huh? You mean here?” Eren asked, a little thrown off at the random question.

Levi walked over to Eren with a bottle in hand. He put his free hand on Eren’s waist as he wrapped himself around Eren from behind, holding out the hand with the bottle for Eren to grab. He felt Levi nuzzle into his shoulder blade and plant a soft kiss there.

“Just for a few minutes.”

Eren appreciated the affection. Especially after Levi had done nothing but bark orders at him since they left the back room. He took the bottle from Levi’s hand, a little apprehensive, as he didn’t want to break anything.

“Levi… I can’t do this here. I’m not experienced—”

“Just try.” Levi interrupted. “It’s not the end of the world if you break a few bottles.”

“I don’t want to break a few bottles.”

“Eren, I want you to perform your flair here soon. So just give it a try.”

“Wait… How soon are we talking? I’m not good enough to…” Eren trailed off. His thoughts were interrupted as Levi’s hands left his waist and moved up to massage his shoulders.

“Why don’t we set a goal for two weeks? Just before you start going back to school.” Levi shifted himself around Eren so they were facing each other. He leaned up and gave Eren a few chaste kisses. “You’ll be fine. You’re skilled enough to do a basic routine.”

Well, how could Eren say no to Levi when he was being so affectionate?

“Okay.”

Levi walked back and away from Eren. “Just throw the bottle a few times and catch it. It’s a little different from the flair bottles, so get a feel for it first.”

Eren nodded, and followed Levi’s orders. And it was a bit different. The liquid inside the bottle offset the balance a bit differently than a flair bottle, but Eren was able to adjust to the difference quickly enough. After a few juggles, he stopped. “How was that?”

“Fine. You looked like you got the feel for an actual liquor bottle fast enough. You want to try to add in a second?”

“Yeah.” Eren said, a little more confidence in his voice than a few minutes ago.

He continued to juggle, occasionally feeling gutsy enough to do a throw from behind here and there. And he gained more confidence with each catch and even though he couldn’t focus on Levi, he could sense that Levi was pleased with what he saw.

That is, until his hand slipped and the bottle flew directly toward the shelf, taking down another four bottles upon impact.

It was a mess.

“Shit! I’m sorry, Levi! Fuck..!!” Eren shouted as he kneeled down onto the ground to start picking up the glass shards.

“Idiot, don’t pick it up with your hands.” Levi said before kneeling down next to Eren. Eren stopped to look over to Levi. “Just go get a broom to sweep up the glass. I’ll mop this up.”

“Sorry…” Eren mumbled.

Levi leaned in to kiss him, seemingly tired of hearing the apologies already.

“Don’t fucking apologize. I figured this would happen.”

“Then why did you ask me to do it?”

“Because this is how you learn.”

“Yeah, but I don’t want to learn if it’s going to break a bunch of glass and cost you money.” Eren insisted.

“Sometimes that’s the cost.” Levi said. Eren stared at him blankly. He didn’t understand the point. Levi just sighed. “You have to take risks, Eren. You were doing great, you just messed up, and you broke something in the process. It’s fine. It happens. So we’ll pick up the pieces and move on.”

Okay, was he even talking about the bottles anymore?

“Go get the broom. I want to get back to my house so we can marathon Back to the Future.” Levi said. “I still can’t believe you haven’t seen them.”

“Isn’t it kind of late to start a movie marathon?” Eren asked.

Levi shrugged. “So we might fall asleep. Would that be so bad?”

_No. Not really. Not if I’m with you._

* * *

 

Levi drove Eren to his apartment so that he could grab some clothes to sleep in and change into tomorrow, and their drive back home was relatively quiet.

When they got back to the apartment they both chose to change into more comfortable clothing. Eren wore a pair of gym shorts and Levi threw on some pajama pants and a t shirt. They both opted to clean off any make up that they still had on and brush their teeth before Levi finally directed Eren to the basement.

Eren hadn’t been down here yet, and he was honestly astonished.

The basement was finished, there were doors leading to various rooms that mirrored the ones upstairs. It had its own downstairs kitchenette and a living area. There was even a small dining area.

“Your mom kind of went overkill on the house design, didn’t she?” Eren asked, genuinely baffled at why one or two people would need all this.

“Didn’t I tell you she was adamant about grandchildren?” Levi said with a light chuckle. “Don’t argue it. Just enjoy it.”

Eren walked over to the living area. Levi had a very large TV. It had to be a seventy-two inch at least, Eren thought. It was placed in a nice entertainment center and Eren also noticed the expensive looking surround sound system. It was the perfect home theater.

“Do you regularly host movie nights?” Eren asked as he plopped onto the leather couch that sat opposite of the television.

Levi was in the kitchenette, grabbing a couple of water bottles from the fridge.

“Sometimes I invite Hanji, Mike, Erwin and the bar squad over. But it’s rare.” He answered as he shut the door. He walked into the living area, handing Eren his water before opening his movie cabinet. Eren noted there was a lot in there. Levi grabbed a box set of the entire trilogy and popped the first disc into the DVD player.

Eren was usually the one who cuddled on Levi, so he figured they could change it up tonight. He laid across the couch, opening his arms and inviting Levi in. Levi laid down, snuggling into Eren’s chest and wrapping an arm up around his neck, using his other one to start up the DVD player. He leaned up to trace a few kisses along Eren’s jaw while they waited for the FBI warning to go away.

“So are you ready to go back?” He murmured against Eren’s jaw.

“Huh? Back where?” Eren asked, completely oblivious to what Levi meant.

“Back to the future.” Levi smiled against Eren’s neck.

“Oh my god, you’re such a fucking nerd.” Eren commented instantly, nudging his head against Levi’s. He planted a soft kiss to the top of Levi’s head.

His hair smelled good, Eren thought.

Levi started the movie and sunk into Eren just a little more as the opening sequence started.

“Make sure to pay attention.” Levi said.

“I know.”

Levi put down the remote and used his free hand to tangle his fingers into Eren’s, nuzzling his head up against Eren’s neck just a little more. And Eren appreciated the gesture, squeezing Levi’s hand back and wrapping his arm around Levi’s back, tracing light circles along it as he watched the movie.

Levi commented on a few things here and there. Occasionally he’d let out a yawn and Eren would follow suit. Eren wasn’t ready to be defeated by his sleepiness. Not until the movie was over, anyway. And he figured that Levi was planning on doing the same.

But the movie had maybe been about thirty minutes in when Eren noticed Levi’s breathing had changed. And he looked down, only to find that the man had fallen asleep. He looked peaceful, calm, reserved.

And when Eren got these rare moments to just look at his face, he only ever came to one conclusion.

Levi was beautiful. Even with his mouth hanging open slightly and his cheek smashed up against Eren’s chest. He was vulnerable. And Eren’s heart swelled knowing that Levi was willing to let his guard down around him.

Eren smiled, and turned his attention back to the movie. As he promised, he watched it all the way through. But once the credits started rolling, it didn’t take long before Eren fell into slumber as well.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time to delve into Levi and Erwin's relationship a little bit. Not a lot, but just a glimpse. And some hints about what Levi's been through. 
> 
> Next chapter should be more exciting. And I'm sorry this is so short after such a long wait. I'm feeling inspired though so hopefully I won't take forever with the next update. I appreciate you guys' patience!! Thank you!

The sun was out, and Levi could tell although he kept his eyelids shut. He wasn’t ready to wake up yet. Not with Eren’s leg slung around his waist and his arm wrapped around his chest. He sunk backwards just a bit so he could feel more of Eren’s naked body pressed up against his back and rested an arm on the leg Eren was possessing him with.

Over the last couple of weeks, this had started to become a routine for them. They didn’t spend every moment together, of course, but to say they could stay away from each other for more than twenty-four hours was a lie at this point. They’d end up together somehow after the bar had closed, and Levi had decided to give them Sundays to share together. After all, that was the only day that was going to work out best for them once Eren started back at college.

Levi kept his eyes closed. He knew he wouldn’t be falling back asleep, but he wanted to relax and get lost in his thoughts. He was sore from a night full of passionate sex, which didn’t bother him. He appreciated how beautifully dominant Eren could be in bed. Although he was looking forward to the day when Eren agreed to switch it up, and he knew they were working their way on getting there. He thought about how Eren backed out of performing flair at the bar the night before. He was still so apprehensive about it even though Levi insisted it would be fine, but ultimately he wasn’t going to make Eren do something that he was uncomfortable with.

His thoughts were soon interrupted when the whir of his cell phone vibrating pulled him out of his self-induced trance. He let out a small groan and reached his arm over to the phone that was sitting on Eren’s nightstand.

_Erwin…_

He was stuck in Eren’s vice-grip and he didn’t want to answer the phone while Eren was still sleeping but if it was Erwin, it was probably important.

“What is it?” He asked as he put the phone to his ear.

“ _You sound like you just woke up._ ” Erwin chuckled on the other end. Levi just grumbled in response. “ _You free? I have a few things I think we should go over together. Marie’s got some pulled pork cooking in the crock pot. And I think she’s brewing some sun tea out on the porch._ ”

Levi was an absolute sucker for Erwin’s wife’s cooking. The bastard was trying to bribe him. All Levi wanted to do today was be with Eren. Watch a movie together, cuddle, eat shitty take-out food and have some mind blowing sex.

“It’s Sunday.” Levi replied, unwilling to give into the bribe.

“ _So you’re free, then. You always take Sunday off_.”

“I… have plans.”

“ _Just bring Eren over with you_.”

Well that was enough to send Levi into dead silence.

 _Shit_.

Eren snuggled him closer as Levi tried to come up with a retort. Some way to deny that, yes, he was with Eren right now and yes, he only wanted to be around Eren today.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Well, that’s as good a response as any.

“ _Which is why you hesitated to answer me._ ” Erwin teased, obviously seeing right through Levi’s lie.

“I’ll be over in thirty minutes.” Levi said before ending the call. He checked the time. It was already passed ten o’clock.

_Since when did I start sleeping in so late?_

“Mmph…” Eren mumbled into Levi’s neck. Levi felt him plant a soft kiss to the base of his hairline before mumbling, “I don’t want you to leave.”

Levi smiled to himself before turning around, pushing Eren’s shoulder to get him lying on his back and moved to straddle him. “You know I’ll come straight back.” He said as he walked his fingers along the center of Eren’s abdominals.

“You’re not allowed to do that when you’re naked.” Eren pouted.

Levi smirked at him. And while he wanted to tease the brunet, he chose not to. Instead, he rolled off and got out of bed completely. “Guess I better get dressed then.”

Of course, Eren didn’t miss the opportunity to give Levi a quick slap on the ass. “Is it Erwin again?” He asked, trying to keep a playful tone in his voice. Although Levi knew Eren was probably disappointed. In fact, when he turned back to Eren to answer him he could see that sad puppy face that he was making. “He always takes you away.”

“You’re getting possessive,” Levi replied as he turned to grab a shirt out of Eren’s closet.

“I am not.” Eren chuckled. “I just feel like something’s missing when you’re not around.”

Levi stopped after he pulled a random shirt off of its hanger. He let out a sigh and turned back around. “Eren… We talked about this.”

“I don’t understand you, Levi.” Eren groaned, burying his face in his pillow for a brief moment before peeking half of his face back out. “You’re about to wear one of my shirts to Erwin’s house – which is totally going to give us away, by the way – But you still refuse to call me your boyfriend or let me call you mine.”

“I’m wearing one of your shirts because _someone_ got their spunk all over mine last night.” Levi said, before slipping on the brown shirt. He didn’t want to leave with a bad vibe, so he chose not to acknowledge the second half of Eren’s statement. Instead, he turned around to let Eren see how his own shirt falls over his ass. “What do you think?”

“You’re a damn tease,” Eren replied immediately. “I’m fucking you with that on later.”

“I think you should let me fuck _you_ while I’m wearing this.” Levi retorted.

“It’d get in the way,” Eren giggled. “You’d be concentrating so much on trying to keep the shirt up that the sex would be worthless.”

“Shut up.” Levi smirked as he started slipping on his underwear and his pants. “It’s not like you would know any different, little shit.” Once his pants were on, he plopped back down onto the bed and leaned against Eren’s body, moving his hand to run his fingers through Eren’s messy bedhead. He leaned down to give Eren a chaste kiss on the lips. “His wife is making pulled pork. You want me to bring you some when I come back? It’s really good.”

Eren leaned up to return Levi’s kiss with another one. “Mm… Yeah. Sounds fine.”

“Alright.” Levi gave Eren one more kiss before standing up. He made his way over to the door, stopping for a moment to turn around and look back to Eren. “Also, we’re working on your flair some more today. I let you chicken out last night, but next week I’d really like to see you give it a shot. We can do it together, if you want.”

“Yeah, sure…” Eren mumbled before pulling the covers back over his head. “Now go see what eyebrows wants.”

“I’ll be back shortly.”

* * *

 

“Levi! It’s so good to see you!” A tall woman with long, brown hair and bright blue eyes opened the door to greet Levi. She pulled him in instantly for a hug and Levi lazily reciprocated the gesture.

“Hi, Marie.” Levi greeted. He pulled back to look her over. “How far along are you now? Seven months?”

Marie looked down to rub her belly and smiled. “About eight and a half now, actually. Any day now, really.” She beamed as she looked back up to Levi’s face.

“Ah, my bad. You guys will have to make sure to let me know when the baby comes. I’ll come visit.” Levi replied. Not that Levi was the biggest fan of babies, but there was something about newborns that drew him in. Maybe it was the pure, unadulterated innocence he wished he could still have. Or maybe it was because part of him wished he could have given his mother a newborn grandchild to coddle while she was still alive.  He did miss her. “So where’s tall and handsome?”

“Oh! He’s out on the back porch.” Marie smiled, moving aside so that Levi could make his way in.

The Smiths had a nice home. It was less elaborate than the house that Levi’s mom left him with, but still rather large and spacious. The living room had leather furniture and a nice entertainment center. The dining area held a rather large dining table and a well sized oak curio cabinet, displaying various vases and small sculptures inside. The kitchen was decent sized with a center island and plenty of work space.

Levi made his way to the back porch where he found Erwin sitting on a swinging bench and sipping on what looked like some lemonade. He was in a simple t-shirt and jeans, his face adorned with a pair of sunglasses. He was sporting a slight five o’clock shadow and his hair wasn’t as well kept as normal, but Levi was used to seeing Erwin this way on the weekends. He told Levi once that Marie liked the gruff look every now and then.

“Did you interrupt my plans for the day just so I could come shoot the shit with you while you relax with your lemonade? It’s not football Sunday, you know.” He asked with a dull expression on his face.

“Next week it will be.” Erwin quipped, giving Levi a gentle smile.

“You know I’m not a fan, so don’t think you—”

“How are you, Levi?” Erwin interrupted, gesturing for Levi to sit down next to him.

Levi sighed and took the spot next to Erwin. He had to admit it was a little awkward sitting on a swinging bench with him. That was something lovers did and these two were definitely not lovers. “I’m fine.”

“How’s Eren?”

“Couldn’t tell you.” Levi said, looking away from Erwin in case some expression he had would give him away.

“You seem happier.” Erwin said. Levi turned back to face him, noticing the smile on his face. “I feel like you’re more at peace with the world than you were even just a few months ago.”

It was true. Not that Levi wanted to admit it. But he was definitely less miserable than he used to be. He wanted to think it was just because he had buried the pain of his past away and disposed of it. But that wasn’t entirely true. No… Instead, he had Eren to thank for his current state of mind. Peaceful isn’t quite how he would describe it. But it was still something better than the misery he was still wallowing in until he saw those bright green eyes in the bar that night.

“I thought you wanted to discuss business.”

“Yes,” Erwin answered. “We’ll get to that in a bit. But I want to talk about you and Eren.”

Well, Levi knew there was no letting go of the subject. Nor was he going to be able to keep denying that there was anything going on. Erwin was always five steps ahead of everyone else, and he put the pieces together of any puzzle faster than Levi knew was even possible. To think he could keep Eren a secret was foolish.

“It’s really nothing.” Levi was admitting to it, but still denying what it all meant for him.

Erwin chuckled. “I think you and I both know it’s not just nothing. Anyone who walks into that bar when you two are working together can see it. And you’re wearing his shirt.” Levi just crossed his arms and looked away from Erwin again. But he continued. “It’s okay to admit you have feelings for someone, Levi. Not everyone is going to turn out like—”

“Don’t bring him up.” Levi said sternly, shooting Erwin an unpleasant glare. “I don’t ever want to talk about that bastard again.” He traced his hand up and rubbed against his left shoulder.

“You got your justice, Levi. You still haven’t moved on?”

“Like fuck I did,” Levi replied, squeezing a little tighter to his shoulder. “He doesn’t deserve to breathe.”

“He’s rotting in a jail cell.”

“Tch. And you call that justice,” Levi said. “The bastard took away everything that I had left that I cared about. I lost everything and he still gets to live. What about Isabel and Farlan? Where’s their justice?”

Erwin sighed deeply, and Levi was really hoping he was going to switch the conversation to something more business oriented. But instead, he left an opening for Levi to continue. He soaked in the silence for a few moments before continuing.

“You’re right. Eren’s not like him,” he started. “Eren is a lot more pure.”

“He’s good for you.” Erwin stated matter-of-factly.

“I’ll ruin him eventually if I keep this up…” Levi trailed off, finally letting go of his shoulder. “He’ll find out what a piece of shit I am, and he’ll either stick around long enough for me to drag him down, or he’ll leave.”

Erwin chuckled, and Levi didn’t understand what was so funny. “You’re different than the person I met before.”

Levi knew that. It wasn’t that long ago, really. He was hurt so he drank. He drank every night and Erwin even ended up having to take care of him some nights, despite the fact that they had been total strangers at the time. He would drink and get in fights. He’d run into that bastard’s cronies and he’d fight. He should have gotten arrested several times and for whatever reason, Erwin covered for him. For whatever reason, Erwin gave him some chance at redemption, at putting himself back together and moving on.

“I guess I should be thankful,” Levi started. “I don’t know what you saw in me then. I still don’t really understand it.”

“Maybe it’s something similar to what you see in Eren.”

“I’m pretty sure you don’t want to fuck me.” Levi smirked.

Erwin let out a boisterous laugh. “No! And I don’t need to know the details!” Once he controlled his laughter, he looked to Levi with a soft smile. “So… Do you love him?”

Levi let the question sink in for a moment. He’d only been fooling around with Eren for a little over two months now. It was still too early for such proclamations. Not to mention, “I don’t think that word really fits in my vocabulary anymore.”

“I think it will someday.” Erwin responded before taking a drink of his lemonade. “But I’ll drop the subject. Let’s get some of Marie’s pulled pork and start talking business. I have good news.”

Levi was happy to comply.

* * *

 

“I’m home.” Levi announced as he walked in the door. He was holding a container with two BBQ pulled pork sandwiches in his hand. He kicked his shoes off as he shut the door and shuffled them with his feet so they were sitting side by side. Eren was snuggled up on the couch with a blanket wrapped around him, playing some handheld game.

“So, what’d Erwin want?” Eren asked, turning his game off and directing his attention to Levi. His face was warm, welcoming. Levi figured he was just happy that he came back.

“He found a better location for Wings.” Levi announced as he handed Eren the container.

“Really!? That’s great!” Eren exclaimed as he opened up the container. “Oh wow, these smell amazing!”

Levi sat down next to Eren. “Yeah, Marie’s cooking is really good. You’ll have to go over there sometime when they have a get together.” He leaned over and gave Eren a soft kiss to his cheek.

This wasn’t anything. There was no way Levi was being serious about this. Eren was just a fling. Something to distract him. Levi wouldn’t give it a second thought if Eren decided to leave, right? Why was he thinking Eren would leave anyway? There was nothing to leave. They weren’t an item. Friends with benefits at best. But the word “friends” didn’t sound right either. And coming up with some label for a boss who’s fucking his employee didn’t sound too glamorous either…

“Hey, you listening?” Eren asked, knocking Levi out of his daze.

“Hm? Yeah.” Levi replied absentmindedly. Honestly, he didn’t even realize that Eren had been talking.

“I was asking where the new location is going to be. You know I can’t work if it’s too far away. And I know you said that the last time you relocated it’s when you came here from Sina.” Eren said.

“Oh…” Levi answered. “No, it’ll still be in Trost. It’ll actually only be a few block difference, so it shouldn’t affect you. It’s a single building, so the bar will be bigger. That way I can fit in some more pool tables and have a larger space to work with when I do my flair routines. It’s also got a kitchen, so I can finally have a grille and bar setup.”

By the time Levi had finished telling Eren about the new setup, he’d already inhaled an entire sandwich. And in good old Eren fashion, he replied before even bothering to swallow his food. “Mffhf asmmgff!”

“Fucking hell, Eren. Swallow your damn food. You’re an adult.” Levi said with disgust. Yeah, he definitely wasn’t in love with this kid. The guy was a slob. If Levi hadn’t come around, his apartment would still be a disaster as well. Although he had to admit that the brunet has kept it relatively pristine since the first time he came over.

Eren _did_ try pretty hard to please him.

“Sorry.” Eren replied after swallowing his food.

Once Eren was finished eating the sandwiches that Levi brought, Levi suggested practicing flair for a bit. Eren wasn’t completely up for it but he agreed.

“On one condition.” The brunet smirked.

Levi rolled his eyes. “What?”

“Take your pants off.”

“What!?” Levi thought that was the most absurd request he’d ever heard. “Why the hell would I do that?”

“Because I like the way my shirt fits on you,” Eren answered. “It still covers everything, but… It’s cute the way the bottom of your ass kind of peeks out.”

“You’re such a pervert!” Levi responded, looking away, feeling the blush that was starting to form on his cheeks. “And don’t call me cute.”

“You didn’t seem to mind my perverseness…” Eren started as he approached Levi from behind. He wrapped his arms around his waist and trailed his hands down, giving Levi a few light kisses to his neck before moving to plant soft kisses on the shell of his ear. And in a sultry tone, he continued. “When I had you bent over the kitchen counter last night…”

“I was trying to make us a snack, asshole.” Levi replied with a tone that completely contradicted his words. He replied to Eren in a similar low tone, turning his head back so he could catch Eren’s lips. “You came up behind me and couldn’t keep your hands off.” He said as they separated. “I’m starting to think you’re only in this for the sex after all.”

It was a lie, of course. Because Eren was definitely interested in Levi as a person. Which was more than apparent when they had their discussions of what exactly they were. Levi still refused to let Eren call him his boyfriend. He didn’t want to slap a label on this because he was afraid of where this would go. At the end of the day, if Eren wasn’t officially his boyfriend, then a broken heart wouldn’t be justified, right?

Hah… As if he could get a broken heart anyway.

But Eren was sweet. He asked Levi about his day, let him choose how they spent their time if he wanted. If Levi was having a bad day, Eren would do his best to cheer him up. The boy cared about him, and Levi was certain of that. What was more terrifying were the feelings that Levi knew would inevitably hit him if they are to continue doing this. But he wouldn’t be able to bring himself to stop even if he wanted to. Ever since he laid eyes on Eren, there’s just been something about him. Something pure, something healing, something calming.

Eren was far from perfect, but who was Levi to judge? Levi was the epitome of all the things that could go wrong with a person. And maybe Eren would learn that someday, and maybe he would leave. But for now, Levi would take all of the affection and tenderness that Eren had to offer him. Because deep in his heart, Levi knew that he needed to heal. He needed to move on, forget the demons of his past, and leave them behind.

And fuck… The flair practice could wait because this boy was pressing up against him, kissing his neck, suffocating him with his intoxicating scent and even more intoxicating words.

“Eren…” Levi breathed as he started to unbutton and unzip his pants. He leaned back to kiss the brunet again before slipping them off completely. He turned around, pulling Eren in for a deep kiss before continuing with his request. “Against the wall...”

And Eren was happy to oblige.


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mikasa is planning to visit, Armin and Eren bonding, the bar about to be open for the last time, some good sex and...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots of fluff and sex in this chapter?? lol
> 
> Annnd... you guys are going to hate me at the end.

“… This weekend?”

“ _Well, yeah. Weren’t you going to do your first routine on Saturday?_ ”

“Um, well… Yeah, Levi and I are going to do a duel routine. He wants me to save the solo routine for the new bar.”

“ _Either way, it doesn’t matter. I already took time off work and I miss you._ ”

Another month had passed. Eren still hadn’t performed a routine yet, but not because he was nervous. He just didn’t know how to keep his hormones under control when Levi was around, or he was feeling too lazy to work with him on flair. Sometimes Levi gave in and sometimes Levi made him work on it anyway. But when he wasn’t in the mood to work on his skills, practice ended up being a bit of a waste. On top of that, he was also burdened with homework from his classes since he was finally back in school for the fall semester. Levi understood that he had a load on his shoulders and didn’t push him too much on the issue.

Erwin found a new location for Wings and Eren was actually pretty thrilled about it. There would be more space and no separation. It would all be on one floor, there would be food, a karaoke stand (by his recommendation) and more freedom to have fun with theme nights – which have now been pushed to a bi-weekly occurrence.

This weekend would be the last at the bar on the strip. Erwin would be expanding on Wall Maria and tearing down the wall the separates the two bars. Levi suggested that they do a flair routine together on the last night, which would have been Saturday. Friday night was going to be a hip-hop theme night, which was suggested by Petra. Sunday would be the day for packing and getting things ready to shift over.

Mikasa sounded pretty insistent on coming up to see Eren for the weekend. Not that he was objecting, but he did have plans with Levi for Saturday night. Maybe he’d just have to push them up to Friday instead. No big deal.

“ _So how are things going with the shrimp_?” Mikasa asked. Eren still had yet to really get her on board with their relationship. But it’s not like his words alone would convince her that Levi’s not a bad guy. She was someone who needed to see things for herself in order to believe them. And all she knew from her last visit was that Levi let Eren drink irresponsibly and did nothing to protect him. So it’s not as though Eren could blame her.

“They’re fine. Great, actually,” Eren answered. And it wasn’t a lie, exactly. Yeah, he was still pretty bummed that Levi was continuing to reject the idea of becoming official “boyfriends.” Although Eren considered them as such by their actions. They rarely spent a night in separate places. Either Eren went to Levi’s or Levi came to his apartment. Eren would work on his homework while Levi worked on other things like inventory for the bar or knitting (who knew the guy could knit?). “You should really try to talk to him if you’re going to come visit. He’s not as bad as you want him to be.”

“ _Yeah, we’ll see,_ ” Mikasa replied on the other end of the line. “ _Anyway, I have to clock back in from my lunch. I’ll let you know when I’m heading up._ ”

“Alright, see you later.”

“She’s coming up to visit?” Armin asked, peeking out from behind his book to look over to Eren. He’d been coming over more often so he could help Eren study. And also just to make sure that they didn’t grow apart. After the fight they had, Eren realized he was being unfair to Armin, but Armin also agreed that he was acting a bit more distant toward Eren as well. Turns out, they’re both afraid of the inevitability that they will someday be far apart from each other.

Eren sighed. “Yeah….” He ran his hand through his hair. “I mean it’s not like I don’t want to see her. I really miss her. But I’m worried about how she’ll treat Levi.”

“Well it’s not like she’s going to scare him off,” Armin stated. His phone beeped and he picked it up to check the message.

Eren snorted. “Yeah right, she was like a viper when I was dating Mina in high school.” He looked at Armin and noticed him smiling widely at his phone. “Jean?” He asked.

“Yeah. It’s nothing. He just got some nice dinner reservations set up for Friday,” Armin beamed. Their relationship had really been blooming and although Eren protested against it in the beginning due to the circumstances, he was starting to see how good it was for the both of them. Jean still had his bad nights, but he was healing. And Armin’s eyes lit up a lot more than they used to. Eren was happy for the both of them. “A viper, though? I didn’t think she was that bad,” he chuckled.

“She wouldn’t even let Mina in the door of the house after she found out that we had sex,” Eren laughed. “She refused to let her in for a good two weeks until mom finally told her to knock it off.”

“Over protective big sis,” Armin said. “She just cares about you. You know that.”

He did know. Mikasa only ever looked out for his well-being and even though she came off as a nag at times, Eren appreciated that she always had his back no matter what. “You know she’s just as protective of you too, right?”

Armin laughed. “Jean’s already passed her test.”

“Yeah, but if he ever hurt you, she’d be there to beat him up in a heartbeat.”

Armin smiled and shook his head. “How are things going with Levi anyway? You guys seem pretty inseparable. Is he letting you call him your boyfriend yet?”

Eren let out a sigh and slumped back onto the couch. “No.” He was actually starting to really dislike talking about this. He hated talking about it with Levi and he hated it when Armin brought it up. “And he still won’t tell me why he’s so against it either. I mean, he keeps saying that he doesn’t want to give us a label. But I don’t understand it.”

“Doesn’t it worry you? It sounds like he’s not that serious about you,” Armin stated.

Eren felt a pit in his stomach at the idea. He didn’t like that. And he knew Armin wasn’t trying to plant seeds of doubt in his mind. Honestly, he didn’t have to. They were already there, but Eren just buried them deep down and he refused to water them and let them bloom into something more dangerous. “He dotes on me too much. And, I mean… We don’t spend a night apart. One of us always ends up at the other’s place before we fall asleep. I just think he’s afraid of something.”

“He doesn’t seem like the type to be afraid of anything,” Armin replied. “He seems pretty sure of himself to me.”

“Someone hurt him before,” Eren started. Levi had never stated it outright, but Eren knew something was up. No one just hesitated about things the way Levi did without having become jaded by a bad experience. “But he won’t tell me about it. And I don’t pry.”

“Maybe you should,” Armin suggested. But Eren just shook his head.

“It’s not my place. If he doesn’t think I need to know, then maybe it’s better if I just don’t know.”

“…Do you love him, Eren?” Armin asked.

Eren fell silent for a moment and thought about it. But it wasn’t long before he opened his textbook and looked down to it. “Let’s just get back to studying.”

* * *

 

Friday came soon enough and hip-hop theme night had a decent turnout. Not that Eren was the biggest fan of rap music, but it wasn’t so bad. Eren worked upstairs with Petra that night but she let him take a break to watch Levi’s routine. It was an impressive routine that he chose to do to the song “Wild for the Night” by A$AP Rocky.

It actually amazed Eren how quickly Levi was able to come up with something each week. And two nights in a row, too. On top of them practicing their routine for the following night together, Levi had only spent Thursday night panning out his routine for tonight. Eren watched him practice, of course. Levi always practiced his routines in the basement where he had a small little bar in the kitchen area. And although Eren really didn’t care to have to listen to the song over and over, it was actually more of a treat to watch Levi work through everything instead of knowing exactly what he wanted to do right off the bat. It was different than watching him in the bar. It was something more intimate, and Eren was the only one who got to see his routines as a work in progress.

Once Levi was through with his routine, Eren applauded him and gave him a smile before he headed back upstairs to join Petra again.

She seemed a bit off tonight.

“Got something on your mind?” Eren asked, leaning over the counter to mimic what she was doing. The upstairs was slow tonight since more people were dancing to the hip hop music in the basement where there was more room, so the two of them spent more time standing around than tending to customers.

“Oh, nothing. I’m just used to working with Auruo on Fridays,” Petra sighed. She looked over to Eren and added, “No offense to you or anything. I don’t mind working with you, it’s just…”

“You’ve got the hots for him, don’t you?” Eren teased, and he was certain he’d never seen Petra’s face so red before.

“It’s not…”

“You totally do.” Eren said as he smiled and bumped hips with her. “You don’t have to be shy about it.”

“I used to hate him, you know,” Petra said as she looked longingly in the direction of the door. “He’s so arrogant and cocky and just rough around the edges.” And then she chuckled. “But he’s got a soft side.”

Eren looked at her with a soft expression as she talked about small things like his favorite food, his fear of spiders, places he liked to go to and so on. For wanting to deny that she liked him, she sure knew a lot about him. But Eren supposed that would happen when they worked together so much.

“I knew he had a crush on me for the longest time. But he finally asked me on a date a couple weeks ago and I just… I couldn’t say no. And he’s just… He’s really sweet, Eren. He makes me smile and laugh and he’s warm.” She beamed at Eren, a blush still invading her cheeks. “Is Levi like that?”

Ah, now it was Eren’s turn. The problem was, he wasn’t sure how much he wanted to gush about, or if he even should.

“He’s warm,” he replied simply.

Petra placed her hand on top of Eren’s and smiled at him. “I’m glad,” she said. “And I’m sure he thinks the same about you too.”

“I hate to break up the tender moment here, but would one of you mind getting me a glass of water?”

Eren looked over to find Jean taking a seat at the bar counter.

“Aren’t you and Armin going to go out to eat somewhere?” Eren asked. Petra had already moved to start getting Jean his water. Eren looked at the clock and continued. “It’s almost ten thirty.”

“Our reservations are for eleven. I’m just waiting on Armin to meet up with me here,” Jean said.

“Levi’s okay with you cutting your night short at the DJ stand?” Eren asked, still baffled that Levi was willing to lose his main source of entertainment on Friday nights.

“I showed Connie how to use the turntable, so he’s going to cover for me when I leave. I’ve got a playlist set up right now while I wait.” Jean explained as Petra handed him his drink. “Levi agreed to pay him for half a night and he needs the money.”

“Is there a reason you’re going to a fancy restaurant tonight?” She asked, giving Jean a sheepish grin. But Jean just shook his head.

“Nothing special. I just wanted to take him out somewhere nice. He deserves it.”

Eren actually felt a little jealous. The only place that he and Levi ever really went to eat at were fast food joints and IHOP. But he understood that Levi was busy and now with Eren back in school, their schedules were just chaotic to work out. Still, it gave Eren his doubts. After all, they always had Sundays together, and still Levi never did anything special for him. Short of a couple weeks ago when Levi decided to surprise Eren with lingerie. That was unexpected. Welcome, but unexpected. Still, it wasn’t the same as what Jean was doing for Armin.

The night continued. Armin came to the bar soon enough and then he and Jean left. Eren and Petra tended to a few customers but overall, the upstairs remained slow. He listened to Petra talk about Auruo, which was nice because it got his mind off his own worries, and eventually it was time for the bar to close down for the night.

“Your apartment tonight?” Levi asked as he walked downstairs after locking the front door of the bar.

“Hm? Oh… Yeah.” Eren replied as he pressed a few options on the screen of the digital jukebox. “Mikasa will be here in the morning sometime so I need to make sure I’m at home.” Ah, yes… There’s the song he was looking for.

Levi flicked the lights off, leaving only the neon bar lights aglow, and Eren pressed the play button, resulting in Marvin Gaye sounding through the speakers of the bar. Everyone had already left by now, leaving Eren and Levi to themselves to do as they pleased. And Eren was ready to take advantage of that.

_I’ve been really tryin’, baby. Tryin’ to hold back these feelings for so long…_

“What are you doing?” Levi asked as Eren sauntered over to him. “This song is stupid.”

Eren hummed and smiled as he wrapped an arm around Levi’s waist and started singing to the song. “ _And if you feel like I feel, baby. Come on…_ ”

Levi raised his eyebrows as he placed his arms behind Eren’s neck. The brunet continued to sing and Levi couldn’t help but chuckle at him. “Really?”

“ _Let’s get it on…_ ” Eren continued to sing as the two of them started to rock back and forth, Eren pulling them closer.

_Let’s get it on…_

 “Eren, what is this about?” Levi asked.

_We’re all sensitive people with so much to give, understand me, sugar…_

“Levi…” Eren said as he moved to intertwine a hand with Levi’s, continuing to sway the two of them back and forth.

_Since we got to be… Let’s say… I love you…_

He leaned down and gave the raven a gentle kiss, before pressing their cheeks together. “I was going to do this tomorrow but I know Mikasa would throw a fit if I blew her off while she’s in town.”

“Get to the point, kid.” Levi said, planting a sweet kiss to the shell of Eren’s ear.

“I want you to fill me up, Levi.” Eren said in a low, breathy tone. “I’m ready to know what it’s like… To be the one on bottom… To have _you_ being the one making my voice ragged the next day.”

“A simple ‘fuck me’ would have worked, you know,” Levi started. “If that’s how you feel, let’s get back home.”

_And don’t you know how sweet and wonderful life can be…_

 “I want to do it here.”

_And I’m asking you, baby… To get it on with me…_

“Why…?” Levi asked. “Why not in the comfort of a bed? You’re first time taking it up the ass isn’t exactly going to be rainbows and daisies.”

“Just be adventurous with me, Levi. I’ve got everything we need.” Eren said as he started to suck and play with Levi’s earlobe. “Think of it as a parting with the bar. We met here, after all.”

It was some dumb, sentimental shit but it was true. Not that they would never come back to this place since Erwin still owned it. But it wouldn’t be what it was when they met.

“And where exactly…”

“Pool table. I’ve been fantasizing about it for weeks.” Eren said without any hesitation. “Although I was fantasizing about bending _you_ over it, but…”

“I’m not going to bend you over,” Levi stated.

_If you believe in love, let’s get it on…_

“So you won’t do it?” Eren asked, pulling away to look at Levi’s face.

“No, idiot.” Levi replied, leaning up to give Eren a kiss. “We’ll save the rough, adventurous shit for when you’re accustomed to actually doing it this way.” He pulled the two of them closer at the hips, creating some friction between them. “I want to lay you down… Take care of you… Make sure you feel good.”

This was actually more sentimental than Eren bargained for. He was expecting Levi to be as rough and demanding as usual, so it was weird to hear him say something so gentle. And any doubt that Eren felt earlier was erased quickly enough. Levi did care about him, after all. He wanted to… take care of him. “Levi…”

The raven quickly leaned up again for a deep kiss, pushing Eren backwards until they hit the wall. The music had stopped, and the air was filled with nothing but sweet moans and the wet, smacking sounds their lips were creating. Levi snaked his hands up the inside of Eren’s shirt until he was pulling it completely off, throwing it across the room in an unknown area. “You sure about this?” He breathed before moving back in for another kiss.

Even if Eren wasn’t sure, he was way too turned on to stop now. “I want you so bad Levi… Please…”

And that was it. The electricity swirling in the air around them had completely consumed them. Their kisses grew deeper, only parting when another article of clothing was removed. And when the two were completely naked, they clumsily made their way over to the pool table where Eren became pinned to the frame.

Levi kissed down his chest and his torso, palming at his balls before getting down on his knees completely. It didn’t take much longer before Eren felt the warm, wet heat of Levi’s mouth surrounding him completely, sliding back and forth and driving him wild. “Levi… Hahhh….”

It was so good. Levi was always so good and Eren was unashamedly addicted to it. He reached a hand down, clutching Levi’s hair in his grip as he started to direct how fast and deep the other was bobbing his head. But when he remembered he was supposed to be on the submissive side tonight, he let go.

“Get on the table,” Levi said. Eren was quick to obey, pushing himself up and sliding back a bit until he was sprawled out on the green fabric. “You said you had lube?” Levi asked, and Eren nodded and looked over to his pants on the floor. Levi walked over and fished into the pockets to pull out lube and a condom.

“You don’t… have to use the condom if you don’t want to,” Eren stated.

“Easier cleanup,” Levi replied simply before crawling onto the pool table himself. He hovered over the brunet, kissing him deeply once more as his hand trailed down to grace light fingertips over the head of Eren’s cock. He pulled back and sat up, stroking his own for a brief moment before throwing Eren’s leg over his shoulder and opening the packet of lube. “This might sting. If you’re uncomfortable, I’ll stop.”

Eren nodded in understanding and Levi dipped a couple fingers into the packet before massaging the ring of muscle at Eren’s opening. It was a strange sensation for Eren, but it wasn’t bad. But when he felt that pressure moving in, he couldn’t help but gasp and even tried to squirm away.

“Just breathe,” Levi said, gently pressing his finger in deeper and rubbing a circle on Eren’s hip. “You’ll adjust… It’ll feel really good if I can manage to find your prostate.”

Eren threw his arm over his face. He was actually rather embarrassed about his initial reaction. But it’s not as though Levi didn’t warn him it wouldn’t be the most comfortable sensation in the world. “Is it like this… every time?” He asked.

Levi started beckoning his finger to try and loosen Eren up a bit and he answered, “No. Not if you do it enough.”

The words actually made Eren feel better. He noticed he was quickly growing accustomed to the intrusion and it really wasn’t so bad. But then Levi added more pressure, a second finger.

“Fuck… It feels so weird…” Eren panted, throwing his other arm over his face and even biting down on it.

“Do you want me to stop?” Levi asked as he paused his motions.

“No… I swear to God, Levi, if you stop—”

“You’re so stubborn,” Levi commented as he continued his administrations. “Also, take your arms off your face. Let me see you.”

Eren did as Levi requested, and he was glad he did. Yeah, he was still embarrassed. But seeing Levi’s face – so warm and reassuring and concerned, even – helped him relax a bit.

Levi started planting light kisses to Eren’s leg as he scissored and beckoned his fingers. And it wasn’t long before a very pleasant shock coursed through Eren’s body, and he gasped. “Oh my god…”

Levi smirked. “Ah, so I found it.” He deliberately rubbed against the spot once more, ripping a moan out of Eren’s mouth.

“Do it again,” Eren whined. It felt so good, it almost completely cancelled out the discomfort he was feeling.

Levi rested his head against Eren’s leg as he continued to massage Eren’s prostate. “Hmm… Seems like you’re a bottom and you didn’t even know it.” And Eren couldn’t exactly disagree with him. It felt… amazing. And these were just Levi’s fingers. He could only imagine how…

“Levi,” he moaned. “I want to feel you.”

That’s all it took before Levi pulled his fingers out. He lowered Eren’s leg and wrapped it around his waist instead, pulling the other leg up to join it and bring them closer. Eren stroked himself lazily as he watched Levi open the condom and pull it on.

“I’m serious, Eren,” Levi started as he spread the lube over his shaft. “If it hurts too much, or you’re uncomfortable in any way, please—”

“I’ll be fine, Levi.” Eren interrupted. He appreciated the level of concern that Levi had, but wimping out in the middle of this wasn’t an option for Eren. It was do or die. And from what he could already tell just by Levi’s fingers brushing against his nerves, this would most likely result in something very euphoric for him. So he was no longer worried.

He watched as Levi lined himself up with his opening and took in a deep breath, trying to hold it as Levi started to push in. Instead, the air left his lungs in a pained moan and a small hic at the end of it when Levi bottomed out. He reflexively squeezed his legs around Levi’s waist, bringing the two of them a little closer. Levi leaned over and Eren met him halfway to lock lips with him.

“So far so good?” Levi asked.

Eren nodded. “Yeah… I’ll be alright. Just…”

“I’m going to move a little bit, okay?”

Eren sighed, “Okay.” He winced as Levi pulled out very slightly and shallowly and slowly started thrusting into him. But surprisingly the pain didn’t last long, and Eren was able to focus more on the feeling of being stuffed, of feeling… whole. “Oh, Levi…”

He pulled the other in for a deep kiss, prodding his tongue into his mouth and tugging at his hair. And Levi must have taken that as his cue to start moving more, because he was pulling further out and thrusting in just a little harder. And every now and then he would brush up against that spot that ripped so many sounds from Eren’s throat.

“Levi,” he moaned loudly. “It feels good. You feel good. Oh, God…”

Levi let out a small groan which was followed by a shallow chuckle as he started planting kisses along Eren’s collarbone. “How many times have I told you that you were missing out?”

“Can you… ahhhh… A little harder… please?” Eren asked between whines and moans.

“Eren,” Levi practically growled as he started upping his pace. The brunet wrapped his arms under and around Levi’s shoulders, gripping him tightly as he started to get lost in white hot pleasure. Levi started biting and sucking at Eren’s collarbone, his neck, his chest. The air was filled the sounds of passion and sex. Moans and whimpers and cries of each other’s names.

Eren couldn’t get enough. He really couldn’t believe what he’d been missing out on. But something was different about this. And it wasn’t because Levi was on top this time. There was something else there. Something warm, and pure and intimate. Eren felt a swell of emotions bubbling in his heart and words came to mind that he knew he dare not speak. Words that had been nagging him for a while now. Words that he knew would scare Levi away.

But he swallowed them down, choosing only to call out to the man who was filling him with so many feelings, so much pleasure, and so much affection. “Levi… Leviiii….”

“Eren….”

He’d been brushing against Eren’s prostate very consistently by this point and Eren couldn’t help but start raking his nails down Levi’s back, his voice practically screaming the other’s name as he felt his stomach coiling and heat in his gut. “Levi, I’m gonna—”

Before Eren could finish his sentence, Levi quickly wrapped a hand around his cock, pumping it in time with his thrusts, and it wasn’t much longer before Eren came, screaming Levi’s name over and over like he couldn’t remember anything else. And when Eren climaxed, he could feel Levi follow him up, spilling his contents into the condom in hard spurts.

Levi stopped moving and Eren noticed that he was even shaking. He gently laid down, resting his head on Eren’s chest and Eren reflexively started running his fingers through Levi’s sweaty hair. And the emotions swirling around in his chest were even stronger than before. It was a high he didn’t want to come down from. But it was dangerous, because those words were resting on his tongue, begging to come out and fill the air in the scariest confession he could ever say.

And he wasn’t sure if that’s how he actually felt anyway, or if it was just the hormones coursing through him.

“So…” Levi said after he caught his breath. “Good?”

Eren sighed. “Yeah... Good.”

“We just fucked on a pool table.” Levi commented. Eren couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Yeah, we definitely did.”

“Let’s get dressed and go home. It’s late.” Levi said as he started to push himself up, finally slipping out of Eren completely. He got off the pool table and Eren followed suit. He started searching for his clothes and pulling them on as Levi found a proper place to dispose of the condom. His legs were a bit wobbly. Not to the point where he couldn’t walk but, it was definitely weird. He wondered if Levi felt this way after all the times that they had sex before.

When they were both fully dressed and ready to go, Eren pulled Levi in for a chaste kiss and smiled at him.

“You’re acting a lot more lovey dovey than normal and it’s kind of creeping me out.”

Levi was always such a charmer…

“It’s nothing, I just… Thanks for being so… gentle with me?” Eren asked, a small blush forming on his cheeks.

“Yeah,” was all Levi said before leaning up to give him another sweet kiss to the lips. “I’m tired.”

Eren led the two of them up the stairs so they could head out the basement door. He opened it and headed outside while Levi fished for his keys.

He heard someone yell, followed by a loud bang, and suddenly everything became a blur. His side was shooting pain all throughout his body. Something really hurt, and he couldn’t stand. He clutched at his side and dropped to his knees, leaning against the wall.

_“Eren!”_

_“Eren, no!”_

_“Shit!”_

_“Mike get something to stop the bleeding!”_

_“I need an ambulance! My boyfriend’s been shot…. 845 Maple Avenue… Wings Bar… Yeah, that one! Hurry…!! Oh, God…”_

_“Eren!”_

_“Eren, stay with me!!”_

The last thing Eren really remembered was being clutched tightly in Levi’s embrace before losing his consciousness completely.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Normally I would leave the suspense there but since I've already kind of pulled this before (and it was shitty that I did) I'm just going to say outright that no, Eren is NOT going to die.


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren wakes up in the hospital. Mikasa gives Levi a piece of her mind. Levi reveals his dark past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no good excuses for the long hiatus other than personal life and writer's block. 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. Thank you for being patient with me.
> 
> **Warnings for mentions of past drug use and abuse.**

Well, it wasn’t the first time Eren woke up to a room plastered in white.

He could feel the sting of an IV in his left hand and a soreness in his right side. His head hurt, he was a little dizzy and he was kind of hungry.

How did he get here, anyway?

_Oh._

That’s right, something happened when he walked out of the bar. Something loud that had him grabbing at his side, quickly falling into unconsciousness while he saw the image of Levi holding him. He had called out to Mike, was talking to someone on his phone and…

_Boyfriend_. Eren was certain he heard that word.

He averted his eyes away from the ceiling and looked over to find Levi hunched over on the left side of the bed passed out with his head resting on crossed arms. Eren couldn’t help but find it sweet that Levi was concerned enough to stay with him all through the night. Maybe he shouldn’t have been surprised by it, but he was.

Carefully, he raised his hand to run fingers through soft black hair. “Levi...” he said quietly.

The older man started to stir and he opened his eyes. When he realized that Eren was awake, he sat up and became alert. “How are you feeling?” He asked.

“I’m a little sore,” Eren replied.

Levi looked away, almost as if he were feeling guilty about Eren’s current predicament. “Do you want me to call a nurse in for some medication?”

“It can wait,” Eren started. “Just… What happened last night?”

Levi hesitated, which surprised Eren. His eyes bore into him, and it almost looked as if he were frightened of something. It was definitely not on the list of expressions that Eren was used to seeing from Levi.

“You were shot,” he finally said.

Eren wasn’t surprised by that. What else would that loud noise have been, anyway? But… why? Why would someone shoot him?

“We were walking out of the bar,” Levi continued. “I heard someone yell, ‘there he is,’ and then a gunshot. Next thing I knew you were leaning against the wall, bleeding out.” He paused and looked down, placing a palm on Eren’s forearm and rubbing gently with his thumb. “I grabbed you so that I could put my hand over the wound and got out my phone to call an ambulance. Luckily Mike still happened to be at Wall Maria and he came outside, so I asked him to get something to help stop the bleeding. He came back out with some rags and we used that until the ambulance came. You fell unconscious pretty quickly, and you lost a lot of blood. They ended up having to do an emergency blood transfusion once they took care of the wound.”

Eren noticed his heartbeat elevate. He was scared. Someone was after him, and he had no idea why. Or maybe it wasn’t that they were after Eren. Maybe it was someone after Levi. It’s not like Levi has never been shot before.

“I’m sorry,” Eren said quietly.

“What the hell are you apologizing for? You didn’t—”

“I know,” Eren interrupted. “But I’m sure that wasn’t really the way you were planning on finishing the night and I—”

“Don’t,” Levi butted in. Eren kept quiet as Levi raised a hand to brush gently through brown locks. He practically melted into the touch as he looked into Levi’s eyes. They held a gaze for a moment before Levi finally started to speak again. “I was scared.”

Eren froze. He never thought he would ever hear Levi say words like that. Levi, who usually had such a collected and indifferent demeanor… was scared?

“That shot… wasn’t meant for you.” Levi explained.

“How do you figure?” Eren asked. “Could have just been a random shooting.”

Levi let out a deep sigh. “I think it’s time I talked to you about—”

“Eren!”

The door to Eren’s room swung open, and Eren looked over to find Mikasa bolting in, with Armin following behind her. She was quick to stand next to the bed and take his hand.

“How are you feeling? Where did they shoot you? Do you need anything?” She was frantic, worried. Eren didn’t blame her. But how did she even know he was in the hospital already?

“I’m fine, Mikasa,” Eren said. “Don’t worry so much.”

“You.” She sneered as she turned her attention to Levi. He looked back at her, his expression stoic as usual. However, Eren noticed Levi squeezing his arm. “You don’t have any business being in this room with him. Go.”

“Mikasa—” Eren started, only to be cut off immediately.

“No, Eren.” Mikasa said sternly, looking at him for a brief moment before turning her attention back to Levi. “This is the second time now that Eren has gotten nearly killed because of _your_ irresponsible behavior.”

“If I hadn’t been there, Eren would have _died_.” Levi replied as calmly as possible, squeezing a little tighter at Eren’s arm.

Eren knew that Levi wouldn’t be able to keep his composure very long with the way Mikasa was about to chew him out. And if anyone knew how scornful Mikasa could be, it was him. He looked to Armin, who appeared to be at just as much of a loss as him. They both knew Mikasa wouldn’t stop no matter what they say.

“If you hadn’t been there, Eren probably wouldn’t have been shot in the first place!” Mikasa said, raising her voice a notch. “What on earth were you guys still doing at the bar at three in the morning anyway!?”

“I don’t think that’s your business.”

“Eren’s business _is_ my business, you short little—”

“Levi,” Eren cut in, turning his full attention onto the raven. “I could really go for a Belgian waffle right about now.” He really didn’t know how else to dispel this argument without getting one of them out of the room. And even though he would prefer not to have an argument with Mikasa, he needed her to calm down.

Levi was quick to catch on. “Sure,” he responded. “Do you want some eggs? Potatoes?”

“Whatever you want to get me, just make sure I get a waffle,” Eren said with a small smile.

“Okay,” Levi said before he leaned up to give Eren a small, sweet kiss. “I’ll be back in a while.”

The room was silent until Levi left, but the instant that the door clicked shut, Eren was ready to bare his fangs.

“You can’t talk to him like that,” He started. “And you can’t come barging into my life when it’s convenient for you, just to tell me who I can and can’t spend my time with.”

“And you can’t talk to _me_ like that,” Mikasa shot back. “I’m your sister. I protect you. And I know I’m busy with work, but—”

“So what!?” Eren snapped. “I’m not talking about your job. I’m talking about your behavior.”

Eren noticed Armin try to nonchalantly leave the room. The poor guy was probably feeling awkward as hell listening to them bicker, so Eren wasn’t too upset about it. He’d probably just stand outside the door until they were done arguing.

“We’re not twelve year old kids anymore, Mikasa. I’m not getting into fights with school bullies. I’m not trying to cut class anymore, I’m not bombarded with people trying to pressure me into doing drugs or drinking alcohol. I’m not bringing home a girl that you hate for no justifiable rea—”

“God dammit, Eren,” Mikasa said, putting her hands to her forehead. “This isn’t even about that.”

“You’re still trying to dictate how I spend my time,” Eren continued. “I like Levi. Hell, I might even be in love with him.” He stopped and smiled at the thought. “You don’t know anything about him, Mikasa. And I’m still trying to figure him out myself, but I do know that he cares about the people around him. I do know that he feels responsible and guilty as hell about the accident a while back. It’s not fair for you to bring that up. Not to me, not to him. And it’s definitely not fair to pin me getting shot on him. Staying at the bar late was _my_ idea. Not his.”

Mikasa sighed. “That’s not going to make me trust him, Eren. Ever since you started working at that bar, it’s been one thing after another.”

“I’m not asking you to trust him,” Eren said. “I’m asking you to trust _me_ to make my own decisions, including who I spend my time with.”

“Eren,” Mikasa said softly as she sat down in the chair that Levi had previously occupied. “I’m just trying to protect you.”

“I understand that,” Eren replied. “But I’m not a little boy anymore and I’m tired of being treated like one.”

Mikasa bowed her head down and sighed. “I’m sorry.”

“Mikasa,” Eren said as he grabbed her chin to bring her attention back onto his face. “I love you, okay? You’re my sister. I want the best for you and I want us to stay close. I appreciate that you care so much, but it’s pushing me away. And I don’t think either of us want that.”

“You’re right,” Mikasa said softly. “I’ll… apologize to Levi too. I guess I don’t realize how brash I can be sometimes.”

Eren chuckled, “Like I’m any better.”

Mikasa smiled and leaned in to give Eren a gentle hug, which Eren returned. He was overwhelmed with her scent – the smell of home – and squeezed her just a little tighter. Maybe, he thought, it would be a good idea to go home and visit his mom and dad. It’d been months, and surely they’re going to be worried about him if they heard about him getting shot. He was certain that Mikasa had already called them up to tell them.

Armin reentered the room after it had been silent for a short while. “You guys get everything sorted out?”

“Yeah, we’re fine,” Eren replied with a smile. “But if you guys don’t mind… I could use some rest. Maybe you two could catch up over breakfast?”

“Sure,” Mikasa said, shrugging. “That’s fine with me, but I hope you know I’m not leaving town until you’re out of this hospital.”

“Of course. I wouldn’t expect anything else,” Eren replied with a beaming smile.

Mikasa and Armin dismissed themselves and left the room, leaving Eren alone with his thoughts. He had a sinking feeling in his gut, wondering what it was Levi was going to say to him. He already knew about Levi’s questionable past, but would Levi tell the truth? Would the truth be even worse than what he had heard from Petra? The more he thought about it, the more anxious he became over the safety of his boyfriend.

_Boyfriend_. Eren smiled to himself, feeling he was finally allowed to put a label on their relationship.

* * *

It wasn’t long after Mikasa and Armin left that Levi returned with some breakfast. Eren looked at him as he entered the room. The man looked exhausted, broken and worried.

“Hey,” Eren said, welcoming the other back into the room. “I’m sorry about Mikasa blowing up like that.”

“It’s not your fault,” Levi said as he pushed a table over to Eren’s bed and set the bag of food on it, taking the contents out. “She reminds me of myself quite a bit, honestly.”

“Really?” asked Eren.

“I always used to be an overprotective little shit,” Levi answered. “Here, eat your breakfast.”

Levi pushed the hospital table over Eren’s bed so he could access his food more easily. Eren thanked him and started cutting into his waffle. “So, what was it you wanted to talk to me about?” He asked.

Levi paused and contemplated for a moment. “Perhaps it should wait until you’ve recovered.”

“Goddammit, Levi. Just talk already,” Eren started, trying his best not to get annoyed by the reluctance Levi had to tell him anything about himself. “I’ve spilled my entire life story out to you and you just hold everything in.”

“I know. I’m sorry,” Levi sighed, crossing his arms over his chest as he sat down in the chair next to Eren’s bed. “I’ll talk.”

There was a small pause of silence in the room as Levi allowed Eren to take a couple bites of his food. Eren could see that Levi was still reluctant to talk, but the man inhaled deeply, and finally his lips parted.

“I used to be a criminal,” he confessed.

Eren wasn’t fazed. “You’ve already hinted at this before. What’s the big deal?”

“I’ll elaborate,” Levi replied. “I used to be a drug dealer.”

Again, Eren didn’t flinch. Instead, he just shrugged. “Okay.” He didn’t care about what Levi has done in the past and he knew that Levi already knew that.

“My ex, Devon was his name, by the way… He was my supplier,” said Levi. “I’m sure that he’s not someone you want to hear about, but it can’t be avoided if you want to know about my past… Our relationship started out professionally. I suppose, in the end, it had always been a professional one. We signed a contract. Not a legal one, of course, but a binding one nonetheless. He would supply me with the drugs, I would sell them for a profit, and he would get the greater deal of the cut.

“It’s not uncommon for a person who deals the drugs to also become a person who does the drugs. I never did any of the extremely stupid shit but, cocaine, pills, I did many things at some point or another. As you know, people can become insanely attractive when you’re drunk. It’s not too different on other substances either. Devon and I kind of fell into a sexual relationship in the midst of several highs. I liked it at first. Get high, numb the pain, fuck my insanely hot supplier. I got what I wanted, he got what he wanted. At some point, I started to view it as a legitimate relationship. I called him my partner. ‘Partner’ of course, because at the time I was still ashamed of my sexuality, and I didn’t want to tell people who weren’t directly involved that he was a man.”

Eren had stopped eating his waffle at some point in order to give Levi his full attention. So far, not much had surprised him - only the part where Levi admitted to being someone who has used drugs in the past.

“Farlan and Isabel,” Levi continued. “They warned me not to get too involved. I should have listened.”

“So, is he the one who shot you?” Eren asked, ready for the answer he had suspected since he spoke with Petra.

“I’ll get to that,” Levi replied, ready to continue on. “When my mom died, that’s when the relationship between Devon and I started to turn sour. He became emotionally controlling. I might not seem like I would let it happen now, but at the time I had been very vulnerable, and those are the times it’s easiest to fall into the cycle of abuse. I never even realized what was happening. He found any and all opportunities to try and make me feel as though I wasn’t a valuable person. He made me believe that my mother died because I didn’t do enough for her. Made me believe my father left because I was a shitty kid no one would have wanted anyway. Made me believe my worth lied only in being his bitch and a person who makes him money.”

Now this, Eren couldn’t believe. Levi always presented himself as a no bullshit, strong guy who wouldn’t dare to let anyone tell him how to live, who to be, or what to do. But as he knew, people change over time. Of course the Levi he knows now was probably a lot different back then.

“Before I realized that he was manipulating me to hell and back, I believed that I loved him. My friends, they hated it. Threatened to abandon me if I didn’t abandon Devon. Empty threats of course, because we were all each other had, so I didn’t listen. It wasn’t until he finally placed a gun to my forehead, threatening to kill me if I didn’t sell… pounds of cocaine, basically. I can’t remember exact numbers anymore. But that’s when I realized that shit was getting out of hand. He didn’t love me, didn’t care for me. I was a plaything and a tool. My pride wouldn’t settle for that. I sold his damn cocaine. I sold all of it, and that was the last time I was ever going to sell anything. I kept the money, split it between Farlan, Isabel and myself. We had more money than we knew what to do with. We were going to skip town, get away from that dark life, and live the high life.”

Eren watched as Levi turned his head away and raised his hand to his face. It was quite obvious the man was wiping away a tear. He waited patiently for Levi to gain his composure, but after a while it was clear that wasn’t going to happen.

“Levi…?” Eren asked.

He heard Levi let out a bitter chuckle before he turned his face back around, eyes red and puffy. “We were packing our shit. We were getting the hell out of there before Devon could come for his money. But he decided to drop in earlier than usual that day...” Levi trailed off, allowing himself a moment to close his eyes and breathe. “It’s like he just _knew_. There was a lot of yelling, a lot of resisting. I wouldn’t give him the money, told him to fuck off, spit in his face. Didn’t take him long before he decided to aim precisely at my friends. Headshots, both of them. But for me? He aimed for my heart. I had already been running toward my friends, so his shot didn’t hit the intended spot, but I fell down. I played dead, because I knew if I hadn’t, I would be dead for real. He walked over to me. Said I was pathetic, a disappointment, worthless, spit on what he believed to be my lifeless body, found our stash of cash and left.”

Eren’s heart became heavy. He couldn’t even remotely understand the emotional turmoil Levi was left to deal with. His mother had died, and because of his actions, his friends ended up dead as well. How could one person handle living with that kind of guilt? It was no wonder he spent his days beyond that drinking all the time. He wondered what kind of magic Erwin used to pull Levi out of what was probably a never ending nightmare. He began to doubt himself as well. Was he enough for Levi?

Maybe that was why Levi has constantly insisted they don’t label their relationship. Eren wasn’t enough. Maybe no one would ever be enough.

“Levi, I… I’m sorry,” Eren said.

“For what? For him? For my friends?” Levi replied. “That shit isn’t your fault. Don’t ever apologize for that again.”

“I’m… sorry, I guess I just… I’m not sure how to respond to any of this…” Wow. Eren felt so worthless at this moment.

“It’s in the past, Eren,” said Levi. “But you… You’re in the present, and I hope you’ll be in the future. But, Eren...” he said, his voice becoming softer. “I got Devon put in jail. That doesn’t mean his cronies aren’t still out there working for him.”

Eren furrowed his brows as he tried to figure out what Levi was getting at.

“That shot wasn’t meant for you.”

_Oh._

It dropped down on Eren like a pile of bricks. Levi was still involved in this, whether he wanted to be or not. He was still a target.

“Are you in danger!?” Eren asked with panic in his voice as he sat up straighter, balling up his fists. The answer was obvious, of course, but he was scared for Levi now.

“Rest, Eren.” Levi said, gently putting pressure to Eren’s chest to get him to sit back again. “We’re both safe here.”

“Levi… I—”

“I lied to you about a few small details of my life,” Levi started again before taking a deep breath. “I never inherited any money. My family was never rich.”

Eren couldn’t say he was entirely surprised. There had been things that didn’t add up when Levi told him about his past before.

“When my mom became sick, I was desperate for money. My job wasn’t cutting it, and somehow I fell into Devon’s ‘business’ as he called it. We started dealing from the basement. I started growing cannabis there, Devon supplied me with everything else I sold. I made a lot of money after I got established.”

Another pause.

“I was the one who opted to build the house I live in now. I didn’t want my mom around what I was doing, and I wanted her to be comfortable. She knew what I was doing for money. She protested it but it also helped to pay for her chemo treatments. She definitely didn’t object to the house.

“When Devon came to the old house that day, he took all the money I had, save for what I had stashed in a safe he didn’t know the code to. I still had about $5,000 left to blow. It paid the bills for the house, and it paid for a lot of alcohol. But it didn’t last long… I’m very grateful to Erwin for the opportunity he’s given me. I would have destroyed myself completely.”

“This is a lot to take in…” Eren murmured, lowering his head to look at his hands.

“I’m grateful to you too, Eren. For breathing some life back into me.”

Eren looked up, eyes glimmering with affection for the other, happy to hear the words coming from his mouth. The room fell silent for a short few moments, and Eren figured maybe it would be time to change the subject. They could finish talking about this dark stuff another time. He was recovering, and while he was happy that Levi was finally opening up to him, it really was a lot to take in, and frankly, Eren was scared that all of this was leading up to some kind of “necessary” breakup. He wasn’t ready for that. But what he said next came out without him thinking about it.

“I love you.”

Eren was met with silence as Levi looked him over. He caressed Eren’s arm with the gentle touch of his fingers until he clasped around his hand, and brought it up to his mouth, kissing lightly. Pressing his cheek against Eren’s hand and looking back up to make eye contact, Levi replied, “I love you, too.”

It warmed Eren’s heart to hear Levi respond to him in kind. He hoped to the bottom of his heart that Levi truly meant it and wasn’t just saying it. But after what Levi had just told Eren, there wasn’t any doubt that it was a legitimate confession.

Levi broke eye contact and grabbed Eren’s fork to cut a piece of his waffle for him. “You better finish this before it gets nasty.”

“Yeah...” Eren said before taking the bite Levi cut.

* * *

 

Eren only had to spend a few days in the hospital before he was able to return home. His parents had come up to be with him on the first day and insisted on staying in town for a few extra days after Eren was out. His mom spent every day insisting on cooking him “real food” and his dad was sure to check on how well Eren was healing, rewrapping the wound when necessary and making sure that he was cleaning it properly.

He was able to introduce Levi to them. Naturally he was worried that they would hate him, especially with Mikasa behaving the way she was about him, but Eren was pleasantly surprised. Levi was embraced with open arms, and they got along great. His parents never blamed him for the things that have gone wrong since Eren started working at the bar.

Eren was unsure if he should explain the situation Levi was in to Mikasa, but he did explain it to Armin. However, Levi finally decided to initiate a conversation with Mikasa and asked to have the conversation in private…

“And you think that telling me all of this is going to make me trust you?” Mikasa asked after hearing about Levi’s dark past.

“I’m not asking for your trust. I’m just sure that these are things Eren isn’t going to want to tell you.” Levi replied, avoiding making eye contact with the girl standing in front of him. “I just want you to understand the situation he’s in.”

“If you think that being with you is a danger to him, why not leave him?” Mikasa questioned.

“Do you think that’s what Eren wants?” responded Levi. “I don’t.”

Mikasa paused and contemplated the question. Levi was sure she would still insist they break the relationship off. “He’s always been a headstrong and stubborn guy.”

“For what it’s worth, I am going to look into moving away from here as soon as I can get the money,” Levi added. “I would suggest Eren go back home with you guys for a while, but he’s all set to start school next week and I’m sure he will insist on staying. I might have to fire him.”

“I don’t think he’d like that either,” Mikasa said. “But… I appreciate that you’re trying to think of ways to look out for him. I guess… you’re probably not so bad.” Levi raised an eyebrow at her. He didn’t expect her to be so calm about all of this. “Just don’t expect me to let up on you if anything happens to him. I’ll kill you myself if I have to.”

Levi knew that her threat was probably eighty percent bluffing, but he made sure he’d keep that in mind anyway. She walked back inside Eren’s apartment complex to meet back up with the rest of the family. Levi stood outside a little longer to light a cigarette and ease some of the tension in his system.

He was glad that Eren’s parents took to him okay. And he was relieved to hear Mikasa at least had less of a problem with him now. Not that he was ever a person to seek acceptance, but he cared about Eren deeply, and he knew things would never work out if the family hated him. Still, he felt overwhelming amounts of guilt for the hurt Eren has gone through over the summer, and he was determined to make sure Eren didn’t have to suffer again.

Levi was going to have to settle things if Eren was going to be safe, no matter what lengths he’ll have to go to in order to accomplish that.


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi confronts the source of his anguish.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> omg an update that didn't take literal years. lol
> 
> This is a really angsty chapter. 
> 
> tw for some violent outbursts

Levi let out a cold shudder when the door closed. The room was filthy, empty, dim and dry. It was the last place he ever wanted to find himself.

It was a curious thing, the accuser going to visit the accused, and the prison staff wasn’t too sure about letting Levi visit. Honestly, he wasn’t too sure about it himself but it was a step in the direction he needed to take if he was going to protect Eren.

He felt sick to his stomach.

After an agonizing ten minute wait, Levi finally heard the door click open, but he didn’t bother to look. He listened to the click-clank of footsteps walking across the hard cement floor and the scraping of the chair being pulled out on the other side of the table. The security guard mumbled something before announcing a thirty minute time limit before leaving the room. Even after the door clicked shut, there was nothing but silence. Levi refused to look at the man sitting across from him.

“And here next time I saw you I thought surely you’d be here for a conjugal visit.”

Levi gritted his teeth at the disgusting comment from the other. “Call off your dogs.”

“Don’t know what you’re talking about, babe.” The condescension in the man’s voice was thick, and Levi felt repulsed at the sprinkled, sarcastic term of endearment at the end.

“You know exactly what I’m talking about you piece of shit,” Levi snarled, balling his fists as he tried to maintain control of his emotions. He still refused to so much as even look at the man.

“C’mon babe, you don’t have to be like that. At least call me by my name.”

Levi didn’t have the patience for this, and he slammed his palms down on the table that separated the two of them. “I’m not here to play games, _Devon_ ,” he sneered as he voiced the other’s name. “You know damn fucking well what I’m talking about!” After his outburst, he looked straight at the man. His stomach turned as he took in the familiar brown, curly hair, the light brown eyes, the permanent smirk on the man’s face, the deep scar on his left cheek. It all came back to him like a flash and he could feel his throat tightening. He was angry, he was scared.

Devon snickered, “There, now that’s the Levi I know.” He rested an elbow on the table, leaning his chin into the palm of his hand. “It really is a shame you aren’t here for a good time.”

“Stop playing games!” Levi raised his voice, losing his patience rapidly and ready to snap on the other. He knew if he did, he would be immediately escorted out. He wasn’t sure if that wasn’t exactly what he wanted now that he looked his ultimate trigger directly in the eyes. “Your cronies are out there shooting holes into my bar, shooting holes into people that I care about!”

Devon let out a loud belly laugh bordering on something hysterical. “You put me in prison. For life. And you think I’m just going to let you waltz out in the world a free man.” He continued to laugh, and Levi was filled with nothing but irritation and rage. He clenched his fists, ready to lay into the guy if he didn’t stop laughing in the next 0.05 seconds. “You were going to take all of my money,” Devon continued as he began to settle down. “You betrayed me.”

“You pointed a gun to my head, you sick bastard!”

“Hah! You think it wasn’t warranted?” The amusement on Devon’s face made Levi feel sick. “You and your friends were starting to prove to me just how incompetent you really were. I had to do something to motivate you.”

What a sick joke, Levi thought. And that Devon had the gall to bring up his fallen friends, it made his blood boil all the more. “You don’t get to talk about Isabel and Farlan. You don’t have the fucking right.”

“Did you bury them or cremate them? Surely they couldn’t have been too nice to look at in an open casket.”

“That is enough, you fuck!” Levi shouted, banging a fist on the table. “It’s none of your goddamn business what I did with their bodies!” He looked out the window to see if he was causing too big of a scene. The security guard was watching them closely, so Levi opted to sit back down and take a deep breath. “Call off your dogs, I won’t ask you again.”

“What are you going to do to me if I don’t?” Devon asked with a twisted smile on his face. “I’m already in prison. Although, I’ve got it pretty easy here.” He shrugged his shoulders. “Yeah… It’s not so bad. At least I’m not one of the pedophiles locked up here. Lowest of the low,” Devon paused as he moved his eyes to meet Levi’s. “Speaking of, I hear you’re going pretty young these days. What’s his name… Evan?”

_This fucker is spying on me, too!?_

“Don’t worry about it,” Levi said as he crossed his arms, trying to hold back from any more outbursts.

“College kid, business major, right?” Devon asked. “Aren’t you, like, forty now? That’s pretty gross.”

“Not even close,” Levi sneered, correcting the other. “So you’re fucking spying on me, too?” He asked, unable to keep the question to himself.

“Five thousand,” Devon said, raising his palm with his fingers outstretched.

“Huh?”

“Five thousand dollars to the lucky fucker who ends your life,” Devon continued, trying to keep his voice low to avoid being overheard. Levi could feel the change in his tone, the tenseness that took over Devon’s body, the newfound seriousness of the conversation from his end.

“That’s it?” Levi asked, trying to remain collected. He wouldn’t admit, but his state of panic was beginning to rise. “That’s all you think I’m worth?”

“You aren’t even worth that much.” Devon leaned back in his chair, lazily dropping his feet onto the table and intertwining his fingers together over his chest. “It’s ten thousand if they take out the kid.”

Levi’s eyes widened at the realization and he could no longer hold back. He slammed his hands on the table as he shot up from his chair. Lunging over the table, he grabbed at the collar of Devon’s shirt, snarling into his face with all the anger he could muster as they both tumbled to the ground. “You piece of shit!” He could see the spit flying out of his mouth. He didn’t care. “You put whatever price over my head that you fucking want but you leave Eren the fuck out of this!”

Devon’s face twisted and he laughed manically, “Oh that’s right! It’s Eren. Jaeger, right? Thank you for reminding me!”

Levi’s eyes widened in horror at what he just did. He gave the man Eren’s real name. He had to get rid of him before anything more could come from this. He moved his hands around the man’s neck and began to squeeze. But he was so blinded by his rage that he hadn’t realized that the security guard had come into the room until he felt strong arms pulling him away. He struggled, of course. He wanted nothing more than to wring Devon’s neck until the life was forced out of him. “I swear to fucking god, you bastard… If you lay another finger on him…!” Levi continued to yell as he was being pulled from the room.

“I look forward to that conjugal visit!” He heard Devon sing out from the visitation room before the door was closed shut. That bastard. This was all a sick game to him.

He continued to struggle, demanding to be let go of as the security guard was forced to pull Levi’s arms back and pin him to the ground. “You need to calm down.” The guard voiced.

It took a minute, but Levi finally stopped struggling, trying to catch his breath as the weight holding him down was crushing him. His eyes betrayed him as tears started flooding down his cheeks. He was shaking, weak and furious. Once he stopped moving, he felt the weight lift off of him. The guard helped him back onto his feet.

“I _should_ arrest you for assault right here,” the guard started. Levi sighed, ready to put his hands out for a pair of cuffs. “But that man is such a dick and I wish I could do the same.”

“I didn’t mean for the visit to get violent…” Levi said, hanging his head down so the guard couldn’t see the tears sliding down his cheeks.

“Just go home,” the guard said. “I’ll walk you out.”

“Thank you,” Levi said as he followed the guard down the hall.

* * *

Levi found himself standing in front of his old farm house. He looked it over, top to bottom, taking in the details. The building was now desolate. One of the front windows was blown out and the long porch on the second floor was starting to sink in. The paint had long since chipped off, leaving a greyish-brown color where the vibrant yellow used to be. Any warmth the building once had was gone, and any fond memories that Levi had from growing up there were lost on him years ago.

His chest felt like it was sinking in, and he was still struggling to recover from his episode earlier. Shivering and rubbing his arms despite the hot weather, he walked inside of the building and treaded carefully on the rotting floor. He looked around the living room. The floral wallpaper was peeling off and falling onto the abandoned, dusty furniture. The carpet below him had long since become food for the bugs that plagued the house. He looked over at the end table by the old couch and saw a picture of him and his mother and he picked it up.

Kuchel was a beautiful woman. She was smiling, vibrant and happy as she held her young son in her arms. The two of them shared the same black, silky hair and he remembered when people remarked that he inherited her lovely eyes. He wondered why he never took this picture to the new house with him as he unscrewed the decrepit frame, taking the picture out. He folded it up and placed it carefully in his pocket.

He walked into the master bedroom where his tragedy happened. The dried blood splats were still on the floor and walls and a stain still remained on the comforter that Levi refused to touch. He replayed the entire scene again in his mind, remembering precisely where his friends had fallen. Isabel landed on the bed, Farlan landed on the floor next to it. He looked above the bed to find a large framed picture of the three of them, happy, carefree… _alive_. Back before his mother became sick. Back before he ever turned to this dark life for money.

He felt the tears welling up in his eyes once more as he resigned himself to abandon the picture and move to another room.

He walked through the kitchen and looked around. The sink was rusting and deteriorating and the counters had lost their sheen. He could feel the floor beginning to cave in certain spots and worried that any step could have him falling through the floor. There was nothing of interest in here, however, so he decided to move onto the stairs leading to the basement.

As he walked down, he could see remnants of what used to be the area he operated from. He had designated spots for certain things. He grew cannabis in the back half of the basement and in the front half was where he stored everything else. He remembered disposing of all the evidence when he knew he would have to testify in court for what Devon did. He knew that Devon would bite back and pin anything and everything he could on him. He wasn’t going to be the type to go down without trying to take Levi with him. Fortunately, Levi had a good lawyer at the time. He remembered that he still owed Dimo Reeves a free drink.

He stood and looked over the area for a long time as he tried to collect his thoughts. He couldn’t get his conversation with Devon out of his head. Of course the man was still trying to drag Levi down with him. Only now he knew Levi wasn’t going to end up in jail. No, instead he wanted to play sick games and try to break Levi until he was nothing again. He basically admitted that he was going after Levi only for fun, but Eren was what he was serious about. He knew just how to get under Levi’s skin and just what would destroy Levi the most. He didn’t want Levi dead, he just wanted to see him suffer.

The man had a sick obsession, and Levi couldn’t escape it.

Fury boiled within him once again and he started shaking, clenching his fits tightly and grinding his teeth. He couldn’t stand the thought of anyone hurting Eren. He couldn’t stand that someone already _did_ hurt Eren. He wasn’t about to let what happened to Isabel and Farlan happen to someone else he loves.

He grabbed the nearest folding chair and slammed it into the wall, yelling out obscenities at the top of his lungs. He continually banged it until it started to break, and then moved onto the clutter still covering the desktops and dressers, shoving things onto the floor. He found a glass and threw it across the room, taking satisfaction when he heard it bursting against the cement wall. “I’ll kill him!” He began to shout over and over as he continued his violent outburst. Before he knew it, the entire area was in disarray.

He stopped his movements and allowed himself time to breathe. His eyes welling up with tears once more, he dropped to the floor, clutching at the carpet beneath him, letting the pain he felt take over his entire being as he yelled out. He sobbed for what seemed like an eternity before he finally calmed down. “I won’t let him take Eren from me,” he sniffled, his voice shaking. He knew now that the only way to keep Eren safe was to demand he return to Shiganshina. He couldn’t allow himself to be selfish.

Disgusted with himself because of his emotional breakdown, he picked himself back up from the floor and moved on to another area of the house.

* * *

Eren hadn’t heard from Levi all day and he was beginning to get worried. He hesitated to leave while his parents were still there visiting, but the preoccupation in his mind didn’t allow him for a good conversation anyway.

“Hey mom, do you mind if I leave the apartment for a bit?”

His mother looked over to him with warm eyes. “You’re a grown man, aren’t you?” She giggled, and Eren figured she thought it was cute he still asked such things. “Your father and I are here for a couple more days, so don’t feel obligated to hang around.”

“Are you sure?” Eren asked.

“You seem worried about something. Go take care of whatever it is you need to do.”

Eren was glad for his mother’s kindness and understanding and he smiled at her. “Thanks, mom. I won’t be long.” He gathered up his keys and his wallet before giving her a hug and heading out the door.

He dialed Levi’s number before he put his truck in motion and started heading out of the parking lot. The phone rang twice before it was sent to the voicemail box and Eren knew that meant Levi was hitting the ignore button. A little irritated by this, he chucked his phone into the passenger seat. Since the bar was closed, Eren figured the most logical thing would be to drive out to Levi’s house. Too bad it was a bit of a drive in comparison.

As he turned onto the gravel highway, he noticed a dark smoke cloud rising in the sky. He wasn’t sure if he should be panicking or not. Maybe Levi was just burning trash, he thought. But such wasn’t the case as he saw a burning building on the horizon.

It wasn’t just any burning building though, it was Levi’s old house. Concerned, Eren picked up the pace just a little more so he could get to the scene. He hoped that Levi wasn’t inside. As he neared the house, he could see Levi standing out in front, watching it burn down. He pulled the truck over and practically jumped out of the car.

“Levi, what happened!?” He asked as he ran up to the man. He was taken aback, however, when he saw the smile resting on Levi’s face. “Levi…?”

“I’ve been clinging onto the past for too long,” Levi said. “This house brings me nothing but bad memories. I can’t remember the last time I looked at it and smiled.”

“What happened to you?”

“Go back to Shiganshina with your parents,” Levi demanded.

“I’m not going to do that,” Eren said with a huff. “This is my last year of college, are you nuts!?”

Levi snapped his head in Eren’s direction and looked him straight in the eyes. “If you don’t go back with your parents then we will never see each other again!”

“Excuse me?” Eren asked, feeling heat welling up inside of him. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Ten thousand dollars, Eren!” Levi shouted. Eren was utterly confused. “Ten thousand dollars is the reward for making sure that I’m good and broken!”

Eren didn’t understand what Levi was saying whatsoever and it was must have shown on his face because he could see Levi’s eyes begin to water.

“Get the fuck out of here and go back home with your family!”

“I’m not going to do that!” Eren said, finally snapping back.

Levi pushed Eren away to create some distance and pointed a finger at the burning house. “Do you understand what I fucking told you happened in there?” He snapped his finger back and pointed again with more aggression. “The blood splats were still on the walls in there!”

“Why does this stupid house matter right now!? What does it have to do with anything!?” Eren snapped back, mimicking Levi’s aggressive pointing toward the building. “Just tell me what the fuck is going on. Stop being so goddamn cryptic about every little thing!”

“He wants you dead, Eren!” Levi said without hesitation. “He wants to see you die so that I can become an empty piece of shit like I was when he killed my friends. You are in danger!” He pushed Eren away once again. “Get the fuck out of here and go home!”

Eren paused, unsure of what to say. He had never seen Levi this emotionally compromised before and he hadn’t the slightest clue of how to deal with it. He let Levi’s words sink in though, and he understood that he was in danger, although it wasn’t news to him. Curious, he had to ask…

“Did... Did you go see him or something?”

“I did!” Levi snapped back immediately. “I saw him!” He stared at Eren with an intensity in his eyes that Eren had never seen before. “I saw him and now I’m all fucked up and I just want you to _leave_ , Eren!”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Eren said, softening his voice in hopes that Levi would cool down as well.

“I’m fucked up, Eren. I’m a mess of a person and you have no business being with me.” He watched as a tear trickled down Levi’s cheek. “My memories are broken and I don’t know how to cope with anything and I must be a goddamn masochist because _I saw him_ and I did so by my own choice. I did it to see if I could keep you safe. And I can’t. And I’m not going to have you die because of me.”

“Levi…” Eren trailed off as he moved closer to the other, preparing to embrace him in his arms. But Levi pushed him away once again.

“I swear to god, Eren. Get the fuck out of here. I don’t want to see you in Trost ever again.” His voice was shaking. His whole body was shaking and Eren knew that this wasn’t what Levi wanted. But he also had no idea what he could say to console the guy and he was fed up with this whole conversation.

“Fine,” he breathed. “Whatever.”

He turned away from Levi and walked straight to his truck. Once he was inside, he gave Levi a heated stare, pursing his lips before turning the truck around to leave on the gravel road. Right now he didn’t care what Levi wanted from him, he had no intentions of leaving Trost. He refused to run away like a dog with its tail between its legs. If anyone came near him, he’d have just what he needed to fight back.

Although angry, Eren figured all he needed was to give Levi some time and space, hoping that he would be okay.

He didn’t see Levi drop to his knees as he drove off, hanging his head and clenching at the dirt with his hands.


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren confronts Levi after months of separation, but a threat interferes before they have a chance to reconcile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I always take so long to update this and I'm so, so sorry! 
> 
> This chapter didn't feel too long to me, but I put a bit of work into it. I actually hated the second half of what I originally wrote and ended up writing something new, with the same general end result. It's mostly angst, but I plan on resolving everything within a few chapters. I hope you guys enjoy. I'll try to update sooner next time!

Chapter 21

Days passed by. Eren would try to text Levi, and when Levi didn’t reply Eren would try to call. Sometimes he was ignored right away, other times the line rang over and over. He told himself that he just wanted to make sure that Levi was okay, that it had nothing to do with how desperately he just wanted to see the guy.

Hanji was the person who informed Eren that he was no longer employed at Wings. Eren knew that it was because Levi was trying to push him out of his life in any way possible - to push him out of Trost altogether. He felt angry toward Levi because now he was out of a job, and Levi didn’t even have the nerve to fire Eren himself.

Weeks passed by. Eren was forced to look for a new job, his concentration in class was abysmal and even his friendship with Armin was beginning to suffer. Levi still wasn’t answering his phone, and Eren even tried to stop by his home on an occasion or two, but it was to no avail. During this time, Eren got himself a license for conceal-carry and bought himself a gun with what little extra money he had left. This Devon guy was not about to get the best of him, and he absolutely was not going to flee Trost.

Eren knew that, if enough time passes, he would have to let this all go.

But… Levi would have to come to his senses eventually, right?

Finally, two months had passed. Not a call or a text from Levi. Absolutely nothing. No gunshots, no danger. Just silence.

Too much silence.

The temperature was beginning to drop and winter was just around the corner. After sitting alone in his apartment for the last week straight with no company, Eren finally decided it was time to venture out. Being too cold to go on a stroll at a park or elsewhere, Eren decided to take a trip to Wall Maria. There, he encountered Mike who was manning the bar for the night.

“How’ve you been doing, Eren?” He asked as Eren shimmied atop a barstool.

“I’ve been better,” Eren replied. “I never got to thank you properly for helping me that night.”

“It was no sweat,” Mike said. “Haven’t heard much from Levi since the incident though. How has he been holding up?”

“I couldn’t tell you. He won’t talk to me anymore,” Eren stated.

“You can’t be serious,” Mike said. “That guy has been crazy about you since the first time you walked into his bar.”

Eren shrugged it off, unwilling to talk about the situation. He heard Mike mumble a comment about how shitty it was for Levi to decide to stop seeing Eren after what had happened, but he figured the guy didn’t know the full picture and wouldn’t understand. Eren ordered a few shots for the night and decided to leave.

When he headed out of the bar, he ran into a familiar tall, blond man.

Erwin.

“Eren Jaeger,” Erwin said, smiling as he looked down to him.

“Hi,” Eren replied.

“What brings you to Wall Maria tonight?”

 _Crushing depression_. That’s how Eren wanted to reply, but his affairs were really none of Erwin’s business. “Just wanted to get out of the house for the night,” he said with a smile that hardly passed as sincere.

“Hmm,” Erwin hummed. “I was just dropping by to check on my bar, but perhaps instead we could go on a little drive.”

“Sir?” Eren asked, confused about Erwin’s intentions. They didn’t really have much of a relationship, not even in the professional sense. Eren saw no reason for Erwin to have an interest in him.

“You just look like you have a lot on your mind, kid. That’s all,” Erwin said.

Eren agreed to take on his offer and the two of them sat down in Erwin’s car. It was a beautiful black Camaro with white stripes. Probably only a couple of years old, if Eren had to guess. The seats were made of leather and they were cushy. The heat felt soothing after being out in the cold. The car still had that new smell to it which Eren appreciated.

“Everything going okay at school?” Erwin asked.

“Yeah, sure… Everything is fine there,” Eren answered. He wasn’t a fan of small talk and he was hoping that Erwin was intending to at least say something beyond typical “how is the weather” kind of questions. In fact, Eren couldn’t bear to let that become a thing at all, and decided to steer the conversation exactly where he wanted. “Erwin, do you mind if I ask… Have you seen Levi recently?”

“Of course,” Erwin replied. “I see him all the time.”

“How is he?” Eren asked, unsure if he wanted the truth.

Erwin paused, which worried Eren a bit. But he was sure Levi was fine. “He’s managing,” he finally said. “He misses you.”

Eren wasn’t sure if he felt relief or sadness. It was nice to know that Levi wasn’t the same without him, he supposed. But if that were the case, why not at least answer a phone call once and a while? “Erwin, can I ask you something else?” After he got a nod from the man, he continued with his question. “Why… Why did you take Levi under your wing? What did you see in him… or want from him?”

“I saw a broken man, Eren,” Erwin said. “I saw someone who’s eyes told me that he’s been dragged through hell, and that he didn’t know how to claw his way out of it. I saw a man who had potential to do good things, but didn’t know how to get in a position in which he could be allowed to do just that.”

“You pitied him?” Eren asked.

“No,” Erwin said firmly as he flicked the turn signal downward and veered to the left. “He made his own bed by getting involved in the things he did. I simply just wanted to give him a hand at becoming a better version of himself than he allowed himself to be.”

“I know he’s very grateful to you for that,” Eren said. “Do you feel like he’s been worth the investment?”

“Absolutely,” replied Erwin. “I don’t regret my decision.”

“I feel like… I’m starting to regret mine,” Eren said, struggling with feelings of doubt about Levi. “When things started to get rough, he just threw me to the wayside. I thought he wasn’t that kind of person, that he could push through anything.” Eren paused for a moment and furrowed his brows. “That he wouldn’t just abandon me like I was nothing.”

“Eren, I don’t mean to be nosy, but what was the last thing Levi said to you?” Erwin asked.

Eren didn’t mind the question, and he figured it would probably be good to talk to someone about this, since he felt uncomfortable explaining the whole situation with Armin or Mikasa. “He just… wanted me to go back to my hometown. Said we would never see each other again if I didn’t.”

“Yet you’re still here,” Erwin said.

“I’m not just going to run away from a situation with my tail between my legs!” Eren said, raising his voice a bit. “Levi’s dead wrong if he thinks I’m that kind of person!” Letting his emotions out caused Eren to realize what it is that had been bothering him. “And Levi… is not as strong of a person as I pegged him to be. When things got rough, he got packing. He acts like he’s just trying to save me from something, but he’s the one who’s running.”

“Is that what you think?” Erwin replied. “That he pushed you away because he’s afraid of something?”

“His ex,” Eren said. “He’s clearly afraid of his ex.”

“I don’t think ‘afraid’ is the right word for it,” Erwin mused.

“ _... has escaped from prison. He’s a man with short brown hair, standing at about five feet and eleven inches. He has a deep scar on his left cheek and a sleeve tattoo on his right arm._ ”

Erwin halted the conversation to turn the radio up.

“ _I repeat, there has been a prison break. Please be on the lookout for a man named Devon Martin. Call the authorities immediately if you have any clues of his whereabouts._ ”

Erwin turned the radio off and the car fell into silence. But it was only a few seconds before Eren muttered, “Oh, shit.”

“Eren, you should get going home,” Erwin stated as he made an instant u-turn. “I’ll drop you off at the bar and follow you so I know you got there safely. You okay to drive?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. But you don’t have to babysit me on the drive home,” Eren insisted.

“Levi would want me to ensure your safety, if I can,” Erwin said. Eren couldn’t protest that, and he wasn’t about to try to. Maybe if and when Levi hears about this, he’ll actually try to contact him. He was both excited and frightened about the idea.

Although he did have a fleeting thought about how he should have just listened and went back to Shiganshina with his parents. He also started to worry about Levi, and hoped that Devon was just trying to get out of prison and move on. But from the way Levi made it sound, the guy had it out for him in a nearly obsessive way. It made Eren shudder.

_It’s Eren. Please talk to me. I’m worried about you._

Eren sent the text without even thinking as Erwin pulled into the bar parking lot. He knew it was futile to try and get a hold of Levi. He didn’t even know why he still tried.

He exited Erwin’s vehicle and made his way to his own. Erwin directed him to go straight home and nowhere else. Despite Eren’s continued protests, he knew Erwin was going to follow him either way. Once he was in his own space where he could focus on only his own thoughts, that’s when a state of panic started to set in. He was angry, but he did listen to what Levi had to say that day. Devon didn’t want to kill Levi or anything, he just wanted to torment him. That guy had people watching Levi, watching himself, and he knew that he was Levi’s hot-button issue. He knew that Devon planned on targeting him just to get under Levi’s skin.

Part of Eren actually did want to confront the asshole. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have a mob of gangsters at his beck and call to back him up if things turn sour. But then, he supposed that this guy was the reason he even bought a gun to begin with.

Eren also remembered it’s been two months now since he and Levi last even talked to each other. He knew Levi pushed him away only to protect him, but either Devon would have figured that out already or he genuinely didn’t see Eren as a target anymore. He wasn’t sure which was worse. Eren wanted to believe that Levi still cared about him… that he still _loved_ him. But the longer he ignored him, the more Eren started to doubt it.

Eren returned home safely and made his way up to his apartment. He closed and locked the door and was sure to keep his gun within close proximity to him, just in case. The entire concept of sleep was lost on him, though. He was too overcome with worry to feel tired. He laid in bed, hoping that eventually slumber would take over.

* * *

Around two thirty in the morning, Eren felt his phone buzzing. His stomach turned before he even had a chance to see who was trying to get a hold of him and when he did, it dropped to the floor entirely.

 _Levi_.

He hesitated only for a second to answer the phone.

“What the fuck, Levi?” The words came out, unfiltered and sudden. He didn’t think those would be his first words to them if they ever spoke again, but dammit if he wasn’t still pissed.

“ _Why didn’t you go back to Shiganshina!?_ ” Levi was practically shouting on the other end of the line.

“Because I’m not a fucking coward,” Eren answered sternly. “And I never pegged _you_ as one until recently either.”

“ _I am not a coward,_ ” Levi replied, clearly defensive. “ _I am asking you to have a little more goddamn self-preservation._ ”

“So you just stop talking to me then? You fire me from a job that I fucking need and tell me to get the hell out of your life!?” Eren raised his voice, unwilling to back down on this. “You tell me you love me, and then a week later just kick me to the curb because things are getting rough for you! I’m sorry but fuck you, man.”

“ _You are so fucking stubborn, Eren. You do realize you were shot, right? That someone tried to kill you!?_ ” The irritation in Levi’s voice was clear. And it’s not like Eren wasn’t well aware of it. He got to see the scar from it every day of his life. The longer he went without seeing Levi, the more he hated looking at it.

“Levi,” Eren said, feeling his stomach twisting around inside of him. “You hurt me.”

“ _Eren, please lis—_ ”

“No, goddammit!” Eren shouted into the phone. “You listen to me this time, okay?!” He was met with silence on the other end and took that to mean Levi was alert to what he had to say. “I get it, Levi. You’re fucked up over this guy. I don’t know if you’re just not over him, or if it’s just that he scares you, or because of what he did to your friends. I don’t know! And you never let me in enough to understand.” He paused for a moment to see if Levi had anything to say, but was only met with more silence. But he could hear Levi’s shuttered breaths on the other line, like he was crying.

Was he really crying?

Eren continued, “You were scared of even being in a relationship, that much I was able to understand. I was scared too! You think I haven’t been hurt before? I have! No, not nearly to the degree that you have, I get that, but that doesn’t matter. I wanted you. I wanted to be with _you_ Levi. More than words can even say, that’s all I wanted. And you pushed me away. And I haven’t been okay these last couple of months. Not at all!”

“ _Eren, I haven’t been okay either,_ ” Levi said with shaky breaths on the other line.

Yeah, he was definitely crying.

“This is the bed you chose to make, Levi,” Eren said coldly. “And now we’re both suffering.”

“ _I’m sorry,_ ” Levi started. “ _I should have thought things through. Of course you weren’t going to go back home with your parents… you’re almost done with school. I was being emotional and I thought I could do something to fix all of this if I could just get you out of the picture for a short while. I was wrong._ ”

Eren let out a deep sigh. He knew staying angry with Levi would solve nothing, despite all the rage that has pent up during their time apart. The greater side of him just wanted to see the man, though. And he wanted to give into that desire more than anything. “Levi… Just come over… Please.”

He could hear Levi hesitate on the other line but he waited patiently for a response. When he finally got one, it was a surprisingly weak, “ _okay_.”

Once he hung up the phone, he headed out to the main area of his apartment. He grabbed a glass of water out of the kitchen and plopped down onto his couch to wait for Levi. It would be a good twenty minutes, he figured. He wasn’t sure how much energy he had left to talk with Levi, but maybe they could at least fall asleep in each other’s arms and talk things out in the morning. All Eren knew was that he craved Levi’s arms around him more than anything.

It didn’t take long before he heard a knock on the door, and he thought that Levi took an unusually short time getting there. Although, perhaps he had been much closer than Eren anticipated. He stood up and went over to the door to unlock it and let him in.

But when he opened it… it wasn’t Levi.

“Hmm, you’re Eren Jaeger, right?” The man standing at the door had a sinister smile. He was surrounded by two men who were much taller and buffer than he seemed to be. The guy had a scar on his cheek and brown, curly hair and it all clicked into Eren’s mind. Devon.

His eyes widened in horror as he realized he had forgotten his gun in his bedroom.

_Oh, shi—_

“Get him,” was all he heard before he felt strong arms reach out to grab him.

He fought back, kicking and yelling, trying to throw swings at the man who’d gotten a hold of him. But he was overpowered as the second guy also grabbed hold of his legs, and as much as he struggled, there was no getting out of the hold they had him in. He continued yelling, of course. Surely one of the neighbors would come out? Someone would call 911, right? Levi would show up soon… right?

“Now, I need you to be quiet. This noise just isn’t going to do,” Eren heard Devon say.

He looked over with a fierceness in his eyes, boring into the man with all the hatred he could muster. This guy was at fault for everything, and Eren couldn’t stand to look at him. He was hideous as far as Eren was concerned.

“You piece of shit. I’ll fucking kill you,” he threatened only seconds before a sock was stuffed into his mouth as a makeshift gag. He continued to try and make noise, to spit the thing out, but it was to no avail.

“You’re all talk, kid.” Devon said in a cold, casual tone. “Struggle all you want, but you’re not getting out of this.” He looked up to the men who had Eren in a hold and gave them a grin. “Get him in the van. Let’s get going.”

Eren struggled all the way down. Someone had to come, right? If he slowed them down enough, Levi would surely show up. He had to.

But he didn’t, and before Eren knew it, he was in the back of a cold, dark van. Unable to break free. Unable to do anything.

* * *

When Levi showed up at Eren’s apartment, the door was hanging wide open. Levi thought it was odd, so he made his way in. There was no sign of struggle, but there was no sense of movement either.

Maybe Eren had just left the door open like an idiot and fell asleep in his room, Levi thought. He headed in that direction, expecting to see Eren passed out on the bed, but he wasn’t there. His heart began to race, wondering what could have happened to Eren. He looked around the room for any kind of clue and it wasn’t long until his eyes fixated on the shiny, black gun sitting on his nightstand with a note stuck underneath it. He walked over with haste and grabbed the note from under the weapon.

 _I found your plaything._  
_I know you were trying to hide him away so I wouldn’t get to him._  
_But you’re not as clever as you think, Levi._  
_Do you care about him so much that you’ll come to save him?_  
_Or will you abandon him again like you did when he got shot?_  
_Honestly, what a shitty thing to do. Even I wouldn’t do that._  
_Anyway, if you don’t come, Eren will die in the next 24 hours._  
_You can return to me freely and work for me again._  
_Or you can continue to suffer anguish by my hands._  
_Either way, you signed up for this and you know it._  
_I thought your new bar would be a nice place to shake things up._  
_It’s your choice, my love._

_\- Devon_

_P.S. – If you call the cops, your little brunet pet will die._

Levi felt nothing but rage boil over him as he ripped the paper to shreds and let the pieces fall all over the floor. He picked up the gun, checked to see if it was loaded (it was) stuffed it into the back of his pants, concealing it with his shirt, and made his way out of Eren’s apartment, being sure to lock it on his way out.

This asshole wasn’t about to get the better of him, and he wasn’t about to let Eren die. And he was scared shitless, but he wasn’t going to abandon Eren again.

Never again.


End file.
